Broken Past
by PhoenixReign
Summary: Zaria is the younger sister of Obito Uchiha. She adored her older brother supporting of his goal to become hokage. However, things take a turn for the worse when Obito dies and Zaria is separated from her clan and taken to the Hidden Grass Village where she becomes an elite ninja and a twist of fate leading her to meet her cousin Sasuke and reunite with Obito's team mate Kakashi.
1. Chapter 1

The chunin exams had ended. The final result Obito and Rin failed. Kakashi however had passed earning him the rank of chunin. Desperate to catch up to Kakashi, Obito spent the rest of the day training in the forest just outside of the village. It was not late at night and Obito was still in the forest training with no intentions of stopping. Usually at sun down Obito would return home when he didn't have a mission. His younger sister, Zaria was worried and told her grandmother she was going out to look for Obito. She searched the entire village before coming to the conclusion that he might be somewhere outside of the village. Zaria walked out of the gates and noticed the trees on the left were all marked up. She followed the trees into the forest thinking they would lead her to her brother. As she got deeper into the forest she saw scorch marks on the tree barks meaning she was getting close. After a few more feet she looked up and saw Obito hanging from a tree doing crunches.

"OBITO! WHAT ARE YOU DOING UP THERE?" Zaria shouted getting Obito's attention. Surprised by Zaria's presence Obito lost his concentration and fell off the tree. Zaria ran over to her brother.

"Are you okay Obito?" Zaria asked kneeling down next to him.

"Yeah I'm fine" Obito replied rubbing his head and he stood up then putting drops in his eyes. "What are you doing out here Zaria? It's dangerous out here at night" Obito asked wondering why his sister was here.

"When you didn't come home at sun down I got worried. So I came looking for you" Zaria responded. Obito never knew he made Zaria worry so much about him. "Will you please come home now?" Zaria asked.

"I can't right now, I have to continue my training" Obito replied. He clenched the handle of his kunai in his hand. Zaria then sat down next to him leaning against the tree.

"What are you doing?" Obito asked a little confused.

"Well if you're not gonna come home then I'm gonna stay here with you" Zaria said and she crossed her arms.

"Zaria I told you already, It's dangerous out here. You can't stay out here" Obito stated.

"I don't care, I'm not letting you stay out here by yourself" Zaria stated. Obito sighed, he and his sister shared the same stubbornness meaning he wasn't going to win this argument. He sat down next to Zaria.

"Zaria you need to understand that I need to train for the chunin exams" Obito stated.

"Oh please Obito, you and I both know you're not training just for the chunin exams" Zaria commented. Obito was shocked by her words, but knew she was right. "You're just taking out your frustration from failing your first attempt and the fact that since Kakashi passed Rin has been giving him all her attention. You think just training day and night you'll become more skilled than Kakashi so Rin would notice you more" Zaria stated. Obito blushed with embarrassment. His feelings were so obvious that his little sister was able to figure him out. Then again she was very smart for her age. Zaria leaned against her brother giving him a hug. "Just remember as your sister I'll always be proud of you" Zaria said softly into his ear. Obito was shocked but still returned the hug. He never knew his sister was this supportive of him.

"You know, I'm the luckiest brother to have an amazing little sister like you Zaria. I love you sis" Obito commented.

"I love you too big brother" Zaria giggled. She pulled away from Obito and smiled at him. Obito chuckled in response. " Come on, lets go home. You can train some more tomorrow, and I'll come with you so I can cheer you on!" Zaria said excitingly.

"Actually Zaria, I have a mission tomorrow" Obito said as he stood up again and helped Zaria up.

"Oh okay" Zaria said disappointed she won't get to see her brother tomorrow. Obito saw the smile disappear from her face. He absolutely hated seeing his sister upset. He knew there was one thing his sister liked. He turned around and crouched down. Zaria was a little confused.

"Obito?" Zaria questioned her brother's actions.

"Get on, I'll give you a piggy-back ride home" Obito responded. Zaria smiled and nodded before getting on her brother's back. She enjoyed doing this cause it was the only thing they did together. Obito stood back up with Zaria on his back. She was fairly small so it wasn't hard for him to carry her.

Obito made his way back home. They made it past the village gates entering back into the village. Zaria held on to him a little tighter and let out a yawn.

"You okay?" Obito asked checking on his sister.

"Yeah I'm fine, just a little tired." Zaria replied with a small smile. Obito turned his head back forward.

"Rin would would be lucky to have you big brother. Honestly I don't see what's so great about Kakashi anyways" Zaria commented making Obito laugh.

"Yeah, and when I become hokage no one will even pay attention to him anymore" Obito stated.

"And I'll be cheering you on every step of the way" Zaria said excited. "When you do become Hokage , I'm gonna rub it in all of my friends faces that my big brother is the hokage" Zaria exclaimed. Obito laughed. Moments later the two finally reached home. Zaria had fallen asleep so Obito carried her to bed and tucked her in before going to his room.


	2. Chapter 2

The next day Zaria woke up and realized it was morning. She rushed out of bed and raced her way to the village gate. She wanted to see Obito off on his mission. When she got to the gate she saw Obito and Minato's wife, Kushina having a little quarrel. She giggled knowing those two never got along. She approached the group and was greeted by Minato.

"Well good morning Zaria" Minato said with a smile.

"uh Good Morning" Zaria said shyly.

"Zaria, How are you?" Rin asked.

"I'm fine" Zaria replied. Obito and Kushina still argued. Obito still didn't realize that his sister showed up.

"Obito there's someone here to see you" Minato stated which got Obito's attention. Obito was confused everyone was already here but then he saw his sister standing behind Kushina.

"Huh? Zaria what are you doing up so early?" Obito asked still confused. He knew his sister was not a morning person.

"You left before I could say good bye" Zaria replied.

"Well you were still sleeping, I didn't want to wake you"Obito replied.

"Aw that's so cute Obito you're sister is adorable" Kushina commented. Zaria blushed in embarrassment. Rin giggled at her reaction and Minato and Kakashi stood there and watched.

"It's okay, I just wanted to see you before you left on your mission" Zaria said. Obito chuckled as he crouched down to Zaria's level.

"You woke up early just so see me off?" Obito asked with a smile. Zaria shyly nodded and Obito laughed.

"You really are the best Zary"Obito stated as he pat Zaria on her head. Zary was his nickname for her and every time he said it, it made her smile. He adored his sister's smile.

"No Obito you're the best!" Zaria exclaimed happily. Rin and Kushina giggled and Minato gave a soft smile.

"I hate to ruin the moment, but we do have a mission to take care of" Kakashi stated earning the attention of both Obito and Zaria who turned and looked at Kakashi.

"He's right Obito, we should get going" Minato stated. Obito nodded as he turned back to Zaria.

"I gotta go now Zary, While I'm gone I want you to stay out of trouble okay? Don't do anything dangerous" Obito stated. Zaria nodded as she gave her brother a hug.

"Those two are the cutest siblings I've ever seen" Kushina said to Minato.

"Yeah I agree" Minato whispered back to his wife. "Obito is very protective over Zaria and Zaria absolutely adores Obito. He told me that last night when he was out in the forest training, Zaria came out and watched him" Minato continued.

"Aw how cute" Kushina commented. Obito let go of Zaria and stood back up. Tears started forming in Zaria's eyes as she sniffled trying to hold them back.

"I'll be back soon, Don't worry" Obito said to Zaria as he wiped away a tear with his thumb.

"I'll miss you big brother" Zaria said as she let out a sob. Rin came up to Zaria and gave her a quick hug.

"I'll watch over Obito for you Zaria" Rin whispered to her. Zaria smiled at Rin.

"I'll miss you too Rin" Zaria responded.

"Same here, I promise we'll be back soon. Maybe the three off us can go get some sweets when we come back" Rin replied.

"Promise?" Zaria asked. Rin nodded and held out her pinkie. Zaria linked her small pinkie with Rin's.

"Pinkie promise" Rin responded.

"Rin Hurry up" Kakashi shouted. Rin got up and gathered her things.

"Coming" Rin said as she went back to the group.

"I'll look after Zaria while you're gone Obito" Kushina said as she gave him a kiss on the forehead.

"Thanks, Well we're off now" Obito said as team Minato took off to their destination. Kushina took Zaria by the hand and escorted her back home. For the rest of the day Zaria sat in her room and stared out of her window waiting for her brother to return home.

Two days had passed since Obito and his team left for their mission. She sit sat in her room and stared out of the window. Kushina came by and brought some food for Zaria to eat. Her grandmother was sick so Zaria relied on Kushina when Obito wasn't home. The two sat at the table while they ate. Zaria ate in silence ink about her brother. She let out a sad sigh when she realized her brother wasn't coming today.

"What's wrong Zaria?" Kushina asked looking at Zaria and noticing her sad face.

"It's nothing" Zaria replied not wanted to talk.

"You sure? You can tell me anything dear" Kushina responded trying to coach an answer out of her.

"Really, I'm fine, I promise" Zaria stated as she put down her chopsticks and got up from the table.

"If you don't mind, I think I'm gonna lay down for a while. Zaria said as she left the room and went up stairs. Kushina was a bit confused, but then realized she probably just misses her brother. Zaria lied on her bed as she started to cry. She really wanted to see her brother. Another day has passed and Team Minato still hasn't returned. She went over to Minato and Kushina's house to see if Kushina had heard anything from her husband. She knocked on the door and waited. Minutes later Kushina opened the door.

"Oh hello Zaria. Is there something you need?" Kushina asked. Zaria never came over so she was a little curious.

"Sorry to bother you, but I was wondering if you heard anything from your husband?' Zaria asked in response.

"Actually he contacted me this morning" Kushina replied. Zaria eyes went wide.

"Really?" Zaria questioned and Kushina nodded.

"Yeah he says the mission was a success and they're returning tomorrow morning" Kushina responded.

"What about my brother? Is Obito okay?" Zaria asked worried. Kushina shrugged her shoulders.

"He didn't say" Kushina replied. Zaria frowned again. "I'm sure he's fine though, your brother is a tough fighter" Kushina continued trying to cheer Zaria up.

"Yeah, anyways I'm gonna go now" Zaria said before she ran off. Kushina was worried about Zaria and hoped for her sanity that Obito was okay.

Tomorrow finally arrived and it was a day she was soon gonna wish never came. She didn't know her promise had been broken. That everyone had lied to her face. Most importantly she was never going to see her brother ever again. Kushina was busy so Zaria was the only one waiting at the gate. She waiting for awhile until she saw them approaching from afar. Zaria smiled real big with excitement until she noticed her brother wasn't with them. She didn't know that Obito had been crushed to death by boulders. Zaria greeted everyone at the village entrance.

"Hi! I heard that the mission was a success" Zaria said with a smile. Everyone remained quite not knowing what to say to her. Zaria noticed the frown on Minato's and Rin's face. She looked at Kakashi and saw that he had the emotion of guilt in his eyes. That's when Zaria knew something was wrong. Zaria's smile faded into a frown. She knew it involved Obito. Minato sighed knowing he was gonna be the one who would have to tell her. He crouched down to her level and placed his right hand on her left shoulder gently.

"I'm sorry Zaria, I'm afraid I have bad news" Minato stated knowing this wasn't going to be easy. Zaria looked down at the ground refusing to make eye contact with Minato.

"He's dead isn't he?" Zaria questioned as a tear rolled down her cheek. Minato nodded even though Zaria wasn't looking at him.

"I'm afraid so, I'm sorry" Minato responded confirming Zaria's worst fear. Kakashi stepped forward as Minato stood back up.

"Hey, I have something for you" Kakashi said as he dug through his bag. Zaria wiped away her tears and looked up at Kakashi who held out Obito's goggles. They were cracked in the right side. Zaria reached out and took the goggles from Kakashi. She looked at Kakashi and noticed that his left eye was covered by bandages.

"What happened to you Kakashi?" Zaria asked a little bit curious.

"I lost my eye in a battle" Kakashi replied. Zaria's eye's widened with horror.

"Does that mean you only have one eye now?" Zaria asked worried.

"Actually Zaria there's something you need to know" Rin stepped up breaking her silence.

"What is it Rin?" Zaria asked now confused.

"Before Obito died he had me transplant his left eye to Kakashi" Rin responded. Thinking about Obito made Rin start tearing up. Kakashi removed his bandages and showed Zaria the eye Obito gave him. To her disbelief it was the sharingan.

"I see, Obito was able to active his sharingan before he died" Zaria said softly to herself looking down at the ground again. She sobbed once before looking back up at Kakashi who covered his eye back up.

"I have a favor to ask of you Kakashi" Zaria stated. It was now Kakashi's turn to be confused.

"What is it?" Kakashi asked looking at Zaria who had teared stained cheeks and red puffy eyes from crying.

"Please promise me that you will treasure Obito's eye no matter what may happen" Zaria begged. Kakashi was shocked by her request. "Obito's dream was to become hokage, since you have his eye, maybe he can see through your point of view what it's like to be a great ninja" Zaria stated. Kakashi simply nodded.

"I promise that I won't let Obito's death be in vein" Kakashi stated.


	3. Chapter 3

A month prior to the mission Obito had a training session with his team. Unfortunately his grandmother was sick at the time and couldn't watch his sister therefore he had no choice but to take Zaria with him. It was early in the morning and Zaria was still asleep. Obito knocked on the door before entering the room. He walked over to her bed and started shaking her awake.

"Zaria, it's time for you to wake up" Obito said softly. Zaria stirred in her sleep still not waking up.

"Come on Zaria, it's time to get up" Obito said a little louder than before. Zaria stirred again, but this time waking up. She blinked for a few minutes slowing gaining consciousness . She sat up and looked at Obito and yawned while rubbing one of her eyes.

"hmm big brother why are we up so early" Zaria asked.

"Grandma is sick so I'm taking you with me to my training session." Obito replied. "Now get dressed we're already running late" Obito said before walking out of the room. Zaria got out of bed and got dressed excited to spend the day with her brother. After getting dressed she went down stairs to find Obito standing by the door.  
"I'm ready big brother!" Zaria exclaimed. Obito chuckled at her enthusiasm.

"Well then let's go" Obito said as they both left the house. They made their way to the village training grounds. Zaria held Obito's hand as they walked down the road.

"Big Brother?" Zaria looked up at Obito.

"What's wrong Zaria?" Obito asked looking down at Zaria as they continued walking.

"Can I have a piggy-back ride?" Zaria asked. She had that Innocent look in her eyes. Obito knew she was eventually going to ask for one. She loved when he carried her. Secretly he loved it too.

"Sure" Obito replied pausing for a second to let Zaria get on his back then continued walking. They eventually made it to the training grounds outside of the village where Obito's team was waiting.

"You're late!" Kakashi stated glaring at Obito.

"Yeah I know sorry" Obito said as he let Zaria down.

"Aw you brought your little sister with you" Rin squealed as she went up to Zaria and gave her a hug.

"Yeah, my grandmother is sick and I had nobody else to watch her" Obito stated.

"She's just gonna get in the way" Kakashi stated. Obito growled in response.

"Now Kakashi, I'm sure Zaria will be fine with just watching from the sidelines" Minato chimed in.

"Yeah don't worry, it's not like we're doing intense training today anyways" Rin responded.

"Tch whatever"Kakashi said as turned away. Zaria frowned and looked away. Obito crouched down to Zaria's level.

"Don't listen to him, no one else is bothered by you here. The rest of us love you" Obito said. Zaria looked at Obito and he saw that tears were forming in her eyes. Rin noticed it too.

"Kakashi, you made Zaria upset!" Rin shouted at him.

"Well she doesn't belong here" Kakashi said coldly. Obito had enough of Kakashi's attitude.

"Shut up will you! That's my sister you're insulting." Obito yelled at Kakashi. "Apologize to her" Obito demanded.

"What for? I didn't do anything wrong. Maybe if you weren't such a terrible brother, you wouldn't have to bring her here." Kakashi stated glaring at Obito. Zaria started sobbing at this point and didn't want to hear Kakashi talk anymore.

"You're a jerk Kakashi!" Zaria shouted before she ran off.

"Zaria Wait!" Rin shouted. Zaria didn't listen and kept running.

"Obito" was all Minato said, but Obito knew what he was gonna say. Nodded and took off to find his sister. Obito leaped from tree to tree calling out for his sister. He continued on for while still shouted his sister's name in hope that she will respond to him. Back at the training grounds the rest waiting patiently for Obito and Zaria to return.

"You really hurt Zaria's feeling you know" Rin stated scolding Kakashi.

"Well he shouldn't have brought her here in the first place" Kakashi defended. "He knows it's dangerous out here so it's his fault" he continued.

"What was he supposed to do? He said earlier, he had no one to take care of her. He can't just leave her home by herself she's just a little girl." Rin responded.

"That's enough you two, I agree with Rin Kakashi. You were a bit out of line earlier. Yes it is dangerous out here, However Obito is more than capable of protecting his sister" Minato chimed in.

"Tch how is he supposed to protect her when he can't even protect himself" Kakashi commented.

"Enough Kakashi" Minato said sternly.

"Obito would never let anything happen to Zaria. He absolutely loves his sister and would do anything to keep her safe" Rin commented.

"Whatever" Kakashi responded.

Obito continued looking for his sister. After awhile he came across a lake where he spotted a little girl that looked like Zaria. He sighed with relief as he jumped down from the tree. He approached Zaria from behind.

"Zaria! Why did you run off like that" Obito asked. He was a little confused since she had never did anything that dramatic before. Zaria turned around and looked up at Obito. His eyes went wide when he saw how much Zaria had been crying. Her eyes were red and puffy and she had tear stains on her cheeks. Zaria ran up to Obito and hugged him tightly. Obito gently rubbed her head.

"Zaria I don't know why you let him get to you. You said it yourself he's a jerk" Obito chuckled trying to make his sister happy. Zaria sobbed onto Obito's leg staining his pants with tears. Obito sighed as he picked up his sister. He used one hand to wipe away his sister's tears while he held her with his other arm.

"Zaria please stop crying" Obito pleaded. Zaria buried her head into her brother's neck and continued to sob. Obito made his way back to the training grounds with Zaria in his arms.

"Tobi?" Zaria mumbled into his shirt. Tobi started out as something Zaria called him when she was three cause at that time she had a hard time saying Obito. Now it's become a nickname for when she was sad or wanted something or just to get his attention.

"Yes Zary?" Obito replied.

"I don't think you're a terrible brother" Zaria commented. Obito was confused now.

"What are you talking about?" Obito asked.

"Kakashi said that you're a terrible brother, but it's not true" Zaria sobbed.

"Is that what got you so upset?" Obito asked know understanding why his sister is so upset. Zaria nodded her head. Obito chuckled in response. Of all the things that Kakashi said, it was the fact that he said Obito was a terrible brother that bothered her the most. Zaria tightened her grip around Obito's neck to were she was hugging him.

"You're not a terrible brother, you're an amazing big brother" Zaria commented. "Kakashi is such a jerk" Zaria continued. Obito chuckled at that commented.

"Yeah I know" Obito responded. "Look like I said before don't take anything he says seriously, Kakashi won't admit it but he likes having you around. Everyone loves you. I don't care if Kakashi thinks I'm a terrible brother. I'm not his brother so his opinion doesn't matter. You're my little sister so I value you're opinion the most" He continued as they made there way back. They were close to the training grounds.

"I love you, big brother" Zaria said resting her head on Obito's shoulder.

"I love you too Zary" Obito replied. They reached the training grounds. Rin ran up to the two.

"Zaria are you okay?" Rin asked. Zaria nodded. Rin turned her head to Kakashi.

"Don't you have something to say to Zaria?" Rin asked Kakashi trying to push an apology out of him.

"No" Kakashi responded.

"Kakashi!" Rin continued to push for an apology.

"It's okay Rin, I wouldn't forgive him anyway" Zaria chimed in. She wiggled out of Obito's grip and hugged Rin. "Thank you for trying though" Zaria continued. Rin squat down and gave Zaria a hug back. Obito smiled at the two. The fact that Rin adored Zaria made Obito fall more in love with her. He blushed when Rin looked up at him and gave him a smile.


	4. Chapter 4

After the funeral Zaria sat at the dock near the house. She held Obito's goggles in her hand as she stared at the sunset. Tears welled into her eyes and dripped down her cheeks. She knew one day Obito would get killed on a mission, but she didn't think it would be this soon. She remembered sitting here watching her brother practice his fireball jutsu.

"I knew I would find you here" A voice said standing behind her. Zaria was startled and almost fell but caught her balance in time and regained her composure. She turned around to see who it was. It was her eldest cousin Shisui.

"Oh it's just you Shisui" Zaria stated turning back around.

"What? Not happy to see your favorite cousin?" Shisui joked.

"Who said you were my favorite?" Zaria asked.

"Ouch, that hurt my feelings" Shisui said as he sat down next to Zaria.

"I don't care. What are you doing here anyways?" Zaria asked throwing rocks into the water.

"I need a favor from you" Shisui stated. Zaria was confused. She was just a child. What use could she be for him?

"I'm not even a ninja. What could you possibly need from me?" Zaria questioned.

"Bad things are going to happen soon. I need you to stay in the Grass Village for awhile." Shisui stated.

"Bad things? What's going on Shisui?' Zaria asked.

"I can't tell you that, it's confidential" Shisui replied.

"Okay, then what about Itachi's little brother Sasuke?" Zaria continued to ask questions.

"Don't worry about him, he's safe for now" Shisui replied.

"Why do I have to leave the village anyways? Can't I just go to someones house or I can go downtown for awhile" Zaria suggested.

"Zaria this is serious!You're not safe in this village!" Shisui exclaimed. Zaria was shocked by his outburst. Shisui never yelled at her before. Shisui realized what he did and was taken back a little.

"Uh sorry Zaria. You see the thing is before Obito died he made me promise that I would keep you safe" Shisui mentioned.

"Obito?" Zaria questioned. She didn't think that Obito trusted Shisui that much.

"Yeah, a long time ago when the war first broke out, your brother made me swear that if anything happened to him that I was my job to protect you in his place" Shisui stated. Zaria looked away from Shisui. She knew she was about to cry again.

"Okay fine, I'll go" Zaria said without looking at Shisui. She looked into the water and could practically see Obito's image in the water.

"Thanks Zaria, I made all of the arraignments already. I have a friend who will look after you while you're in the Hidden Grass Village. I promise that when it's all over, I'll have Itachi come get you" Shisui stated.

"Itachi? Why not you? Zaria asked.

"Because I won't be able to" Shisui said and he got up and walked away.

The next day Shisui escorted Zaria to the Hidden Grass Village where he introduced her to his friends Tosen. Tosen was a grass chunin that helped Shisui on a previous mission before the war. Shisui gave Tosen the task of looking after Zaria until things settled down back home. Shisui said goodbye to Zaria and Tosen and left to go back home.

Months have passed and there was no word from either Shisui or Itachi. Zaria decided that she wanted to follow in her brother's foot steps and become a ninja. She enrolled herself in the ninja academy in the Grass Village thinking there was no possibility of her returning home. She was in the local training grounds practiced her shuriken jutsu that she learned from watching Obito's training sessions. Suddenly someone approached her.

"So you plan on becoming a ninja" A voice said startling Zaria. She turned around and saw her cousin Itachi.

"So Shisui was serious when he said you were gonna come for me" Zaria said.

"About Shisui, he committed suicide a few days ago" Itachi interjected. Zaria was shocked. Now she knew what he meant when he said that he wasn't going to be able to.

"What happened Itachi?" Zaria asked.

"I had to kill our clan" Itachi stated. Zaria's eyes went wide. Killed the whole clan? Why would he do such a thing? "I know you're wondering why so I'll explain" Itachi continued. He explained why he had to kill the whole clan. How the clan had planned a coup against the Hidden Leaf Village.

"What about your little brother? Did you kill Sasuke too?" Zaria asked angry with Itachi.

"No I couldn't bring myself to kill him. Like you, he has nothing to do with what was going on. I'm not going to kill you because Shisui told me not to" Itachi replied. Zaria was more relieved that Itachi spared Sasuke than herself.

"How did Shisui die anyways?" Zaria asked a little curious.

"Apparently he jumped off a cliff and drowned in water" Itachi replied. He turned around no longer facing Zaria. "I have to go now. I don't want anyone thinking you had any involvement in what happened with the Uchiha Clan" Itachi said as he walked away. He paused for a minute an turned his head to look at Zaria.

"There's one favor I need you to do" Itachi said.

"Uh sure Itachi, what is it?" Zaria asked confused. Itachi never asked her for anything.

"I want you to watch over Sasuke for me" Itachi stated as her turned his head again looking away from Zaria again. "I know he'll be safe in your hands" He finished.

"But Itachi, I don't even live in the Leaf Village anymore. How do you expect me to look after Sasuke?" Zaria asked. She didn't understand why why Itachi put so much faith in her let alone entrust Sasuke's life to her.

"You'll find a way, however I would appreciate it if you didn't mention anything that I told you. He's better off not knowing the truth" Itachi stated before disappearing. Zaria sighed as she threw a kunai at the target hitting it dead in the center. Itachi put a lot of pressure on her. She made her way back home with a drained look on her face.


	5. Chapter 5

It had been three years since Zaria was brought to the Hidden Grass Village. She decided that this was going to be her new home since there was nothing to return to back in the Leaf Village. Zaria recently graduated from the ninja academy earning her the rank of genin. She was teamed up with the two friends she made while in the academy Satoru Masamora and Raiden Asahari. It was there first training session together as a team. Zaria, Satoru, and their sensei Daisuke were at the training grounds waiting for Raiden to show up. Zaria sat on the ground and threw kunai at the target next to Satoru.

"First day of training and he's late" Zaria said with a bored look on her face.

"It's Raiden, he's always late" Satoru commented. With that comment Raiden showed up holding hands with a little girl. The three cocked an eyebrow in confusion. They didn't know who the little girl was.

"Hey guys sorry I'm late. My neighbors went out of town for the day and I had no one else to watch Harumi" Raiden said looking down at Harumi. She smiled back up at Raiden.

"So you brought your little sister to our training session?" Satoru questioned.

"Yeah so? She's well behaved for her age so it's not like she'll get in the way, plus she's pretty quiet so it's not like you'll know she's even hear" Raiden defended. Harumi became shy and hid behind her brother.

"It's okay Harumi you don't have to be shy" Raiden said softly to his sister. Watching those two interact made Zaria frown. It reminded her of when Obito would bring her to his training sessions when she was younger. Daisuke seemed to notice Zaria's sudden change in mood.

"Is everything okay Zaria?" Daisuke asked. Everyone turned their attention to Zaria. She didn't say anything but nodded her head.

"Are you sure? Seems like something is bothering you" Satoru commented. He knew Zaria pretty well and knew she was hiding something.

"Yeah, I'm fine" Zaria replied. She walked over to the target on the tree and pulled off the kunai she had thrown earlier.

"Zaria you know you can tell us anything. We're your friends" Raiden chimed in.

"I SAID I'M FINE!" Zaria shouted in frustration as she threw several kunai at the targets. Everyone was shocked by her outburst. Zaria finally broke. Tears welled in her eyes. She didn't want anyone to see she was crying so she turned away.

"Honestly I don't feel like training anymore" Zaria said before she took off.

""Hey! Zaria wait!" Raiden shouted after Zaria and was ready to go after her until Daisuke stopped him. "Daisuke-sensei?" Raiden questioned.

"Lets leave her alone right now. She'll calm down eventually" Daisuke responded. The rest stood at the training grounds staring at the direction that Zaria ran to.

"I wonder what's gotten into her" Satoru questioned.

"Yeah same here, I don't think I've ever seen her this upset before. I don't even know what triggered it" Raiden added.

"We'll just continue with out her for now" Daisuke stated.

"You sure that's a good idea sensei?" Raiden asked. Daisuke nodded in response. Zaria ended up running back home. She walked in the door and was greeted by Tosen in the kitchen.

"Hey Zaria. How was your first training session?" Tosen asked as he was washing the dishes.

"Fine" Zaria said as she went up to her room. She slammed the door behind her and walked up to her dresser with tears in her eyes. She picked up Obito's goggles that Kakashi gave her after his death. She took the goggles and lied down on her bed in a fetal position.

"Big brother, why did you have to leave me?" Zaria sobbed into her knees. After about ten minutes of crying Zaria fell asleep. She was woken up moments later with a knock on her bedroom door.

"Zaria there's someone here to see you" Tosen said through the door.

"I don't want to talk to anyone" Zaria shouted. Her voice raspy from all the crying she did earlier.

"Zaria please" Another voice pleaded. She recognized that voice. It was Satoru, but what was he doing here? Zaria got up off her bed and walked over to the door.

"What are you doing here Satoru?" Zaria asked through the door.

"I wanna talk" Satoru answered. Zaria opened up the door and let Satoru in.

"What?" Zaria asked coldly as she walked back towards her bed and sat down. Satoru stood in front of her.

"You seemed so upset earlier, I wanted to see if you're okay" Satoru explained. Zaria didn't make any eye contact with him. She wasn't in the mood to talk so she wasn't going to. Satoru signed knowing it wasn't going to be easy to get her to talk. It took a lot of effort just to befriend her in the first place.

"Look I know something is bothering you. Like Raiden said earlier, we're your team mates more importantly,your friends. If there's something that's upsetting you we want to know so we can help you" Satoru continued. He noticed the goggles sitting on Zaria's bed and had a confused look on his face. He reached over and grabbed them. Zaria didn't seem to happy about that.

"Hey! Don't touch those!" Zaria yelled grabbing the goggles out of Satoru's hand.

"What's the big deal? They're just goggles." Satoru retorted. Zaria was mad and slapped Satoru across the face. Satoru was shocked and pressed his hand against his cheek to sooth the stinging pain.

"You Jerk! They're not "Just goggles". They're more than that" Zaria stated annoyed with Satoru.

"You don't understand. So Just leave me alone" Zaria said raspy as she started to cry again. She lied down on her bed facing away from Satoru. This is where things got complicated. He knew Zaria was hurting emotionally, but she wouldn't let anyone help her or at least vent to someone to get the pain out of her heart. Satoru sat on the edge of the bed feeling defeated.

"Then help me understand Zaria" Satoru begged. " Do you have any idea how much it hurts to watch one of my team mates let alone best friends suffer and not even telling me what's wrong?" His voice started to get a bit crisp. It sounded almost as if he was ready to cry himself. Zaria turned her head to look at Satoru who wasn't even facing her. She reached her arm over and tugged on the back of his shirt. Satoru turned his head with his chin touching his right shoulder. There was a look of despair in his eyes.

"Okay you win, I'll tell you" Zaria said finally giving up. She sat up and leaned her back against the wall behind her. The look in his eyes didn't change. She picked up Obito's goggles and played with them in her hands.

"So what is it?" Satoru asked waiting for her to explain.

"These goggles belong to my older brother Obito Uchiha" Zaria started. Satoru's eyes went wide when he heard the last name. "He died in the third great ninja war. His team mate gave them to me when his team came back from their mission. Seeing Raiden with Harumi earlier reminded me of the times Obito would bring me to his training sessions with his team when I was Harumi's age" Zaria finished. Now he finally understands. He had only known of Zaria's first name. He had no idea that she was from the elite Uchiha clan of the Hidden Leaf.

Now he knew that they shared the same pain. He lost his family in the same war that Obito was killed in. Satoru watched his older brother die right in front of him. That was the moment that he decided to become a ninja himself. He didn't want the elite status of the Masamora clan die with his family. Instead he made a promise to carry on the reputation of his clan.

"I'm sorry Zaria" Satoru stated in a soft whisper. Zaria was confused. She had no idea what he was apologizing for.

"Why are you apologizing? You didn't do anything wrong" Zaria stated now actually making eye contact with him.

"I know...It's just that you shouldn't have to feel the pain of loneliness" Satoru replied. Zaria was still confused. She had absolutely no idea what he was talking about. Loneliness? Who was lonely? It couldn't be her. She was surrounded by amazing people who she saw as her second family.

"What are you talking about Satoru? Whose lonely?" Zaria asked. Satoru looked at her right in her eyes. He could still see the pain in it even though she was masking it with something else. Compassion maybe? No her eyes were to subtle to express such emotion.

"I have such amazing friends and a team who has become like a second family to me. Clearly I can't be the one who is lonely" Zaria stated with a soft smile but then clearly faded when she suddenly realized what he was talking about. "Is it you Satoru?" Zaria asked with curiosity. Satoru turned away when the look on Zaria's face made him blush. "Satoru? Do you feel like you're alone?" she asked again pegging an answer out of him. Satoru remained quiet. Now it was her turn to be concerned. She reached her body over and gave Satoru a hug from the back. Satoru flinched a bit. He never expected Zaria to hug him.

"You're not alone Satoru. You have me and the rest of Team 13" Zaria said with her head resting on his shoulder. Satoru took his right hand and place it on Zaria's forearm. Zaria saw Satoru smile which in turn made her smile. She was lucky to have someone as caring as Satoru is in her life. It took her awhile to adjust but she's glad Shisui brought her to the Hidden Grass Village in the first place.


	6. Chapter 6

After being a genin for over a year Daisuke decided to test his students and recommended that they take the chunin exams. He handed them the application and told them to think about it. Zaria knew she was going to participate. Even though Obito was no longer with her, she still wanted to make him proud. Satoru and Raiden loved a challenge so they filled out the application too. Even thought all three were taking the exam together, they chose to train separately.

Zaria had perfect aim when it came to her shuriken jutsu and being a member of the Uchiha clan was very skilled at fire style jutsu which earned her the title of "Dragon of the Grass" or "Dragon of the Uchiha clan". She had amazing chakra control which came in handy when she learned medical ninjutsu. She activated her sharingan after learning of Obito's death and has almost fully matured. Observing Kakashi's training with Minato she was able to learn lightning style jutsus as well as speed from Minato. Zaria wasn't much of a fan when it came to training. What she didn't mind was working on improving her speed. That was the only thing she would work on during her team's training sessions. Occasionally having a one on one session with her sensei.

Raiden was different from Zaria. He trained everything. He would spend day and night working on his taijutsu and ninjutsu. Raiden came from the Asahari clan so he was accustom to earth style jutsu. When he became a genin all he knew was earth style jutsu. He learned wind style jutsu while training with Satoru. Raiden was weak against genjutsu and was usually the one to get caught in it unlike his team mates.

Satoru was different from both of them. He didn't train at all for the chunin exams. He claimed he didn't have to. He spent his time watching the others train. His excuse to not train was that his kekkai genkai gave him an edge over his opponent. Satoru unlike Zaria preferred the tactical approach over strategical.

So the chunin exams came and went. Zaria and Satoru passed the exams becoming chunin ranked ninja. Raiden fails his exams due to injuries he sustained in the second part of the exam and was unable to continue in the exam. Raiden was hospitalized after he was dismissed and was unconscious for three days.

Even though Team 13 was down one man Daisuke decided it was okay to go on a C-ranked mission. The goal of the mission was to go to the Village Hidden in the Flowers to retrieve documents. Since it was only the three of them and no one knew what the ninja of the Hidden Flower Village were capable of so they enlisted the help of their allies of the Hidden Leaf Village. Zaria was actually nervous about this mission. She hasn't associated with anyone from the Leaf Village since she left over four years ago. The three set out to the rendezvous point on Kanami Bridge. Zaria absolutely hated Kanami Bridge. It was involved in the mission that killed Obito. The Grass Village was located near Kanami Bridge so it wasn't a far walk for them. The leaf village however was at least a days worth awhile just by Zaria's experience traveling from the Leaf Village to the Grass Village. Daisuke mentioned that the Leaf ninja left a day earlier in order to meet up at the scheduled time. The three waited at the bridge for the leaf ninja to show up. Hours passed by and there was no sign of any leaf ninja. Zaria sat up in the tree by the bridge while Satoru and Daisuke leaned against the bridge.

"Zaria what are you doing up there?!" Daisuke shouted up into the tree.

"I got bored and wanted to see the view from up here!" Zaria shouted back. Satoru noticed four people approaching from a distance. They looked like the ninja from the Leaf that they were waiting for.

"Look it's the leaf ninja" Satoru said pointing out the ninja. Daisuke looked in the direction that Satoru pointed in.

"Yeah it would appear so" Daisuke commented. The leaf ninja finally arrived to Kanami Bridge. The leaf ninja appear to be the ninja on Team 7 lead by Kakashi Hatake. Zaria was surprised to see Kakashi. They never got along when they were younger so she didn't know how this mission would work out.

"Hi sorry we're late, we ran into some trouble on the way here" Kakashi stated as he scratched the back of his head..

"Well I'm glad that everything turned out okay. I'm Daisuke Sumimori and to my right is Satoru Masamora" Daisuke responded ,Satoru gave a subtle wave.

"So is it just the two of you?" Sasuke asked.

"No there's three of us. She's up in the trees" Satoru said pointing upwards.

"Hey! Come down here and meet the leaf ninja" Daisuke shouted at Zaria. She signed not really wanting to see Kakashi but at this point she didn't have much of a choice. Zaria jumped down from the tree and landed in between her team and team seven.

"I'm Zaria, that's all you need to know" Zaria said introducing herself. Kakashi was surprised to see Zaria standing in front of him. Rumors had spread in the Leaf Village that Zaria disappeared right before the Uchiha clan massacre. He didn't think she would still be alive. For now Kakashi was going going to pretend as if this is their first time meeting and confront her later.

"Well I'm Kakashi Hatake, to my right is Naruto Uzumaki, in the middle is Sakura Haruno, and lastly on the left is Sasuke Uchiha" Kakashi introduced. Zaria was shocked to see that standing in front of her was her little cousin that she thought she would never get the chance to meet. Clearly Itachi knew one day they would meet since it was his request that she protect Sasuke.

"Wait did you say Uchiha?" Satoru asked. Kakashi nodded in response. Satoru gazed between Sasuke and Zaria. She motioned to Satoru not to say anything.

"Do you know anything about the Uchiha clan?" Sasuke asked. Satoru became hesitant and didn't know how to respond.

"Uh no not really, I just heard that they were an elite clan that's it" Satoru responded on a whim.

"Come on, after all that traveling you guys must be tired. For now we can rest in the Grass Village until we've build up our strength" Daisuke suggested as they made their way back to the Grass Village.

"That sounds good thanks" Kakashi said with his team following behind. They passed through the gates of the Hidden Grass Village.

"There is an inn nearby where you guys can get settled in and rest" Daisuke stated. He turned and looked at Zaria. "Zaria I want you to go with them and walk Kakashi through our plan" Daisuke continued. Zaria panicked for a second. Of all people why her?

"Seriously? Why can't Satoru do it?" Zaria asked pointing to Satoru.

"I'm having him do something else" Daisuke replied.

"You jerk! You just want me to suffer don't you?" Zaria growled at her sensei.

"Relax Zaria, it's good for you to work with people whom you used to be accustom to" Daisuke defended not wanted to further anger her.

"Fine! Let's go" Zaria said to team seven leading the way to the inn. Daisuke and Satoru went there separate way for now.

"You didn't have anything else for me to do did you sensei?" Satoru asked catching on to him. Daisuke chuckled in response and shook his head.

With Zaria and Kakashi's team it was an silent awkward walk to the inn. Any conversation with Zaria from the genin were shot down by either silence or one worded answers. A few minutes later and they made it to the inn. They only got one room since that was all that was available.

"Okay we didn't plan everything out but here's how it's going to go. I'm going ahead and surveying our route from the sky and relaying any obstructions such as traps or enemy ninja waiting ahead" Zaria started and she pulled out a scroll containing a detailed map of there destination. "Satoru will stay with you guys since he will be playing offense" Zaria continued.

"You think you can handle the analyst yourself?"Kakashi questioned. Zaria nodded with a serious look on her face.

"Of Course despite my past I'm more than capable of handling an ambush. I just recently became a chunin you know" Zaria replied with a smirk.

"What no way? You're a chunin?" Naruto asked amazed. Zaria laughed at Naruto and nodded.

"That's so cool!" Naruto shouted.

"Naruto keep it down. People are probably trying to sleep" Sakura commented shushing Naruto.

"Hmph loser" Sasuke retorted. Naruto growled at Sasuke.

"Uh speaking of your past, Can we go for a walk? There's something I want to talk to you about" Kakashi asked. Zaria was a little confused, but knew what he wanted to talk about. There was no way she could avoid the subject no matter how hard she tried. She knew eventually he was going to bring it up.

"Fine" Zaria said as she and Kakashi walked out.

"You three stay here. This will only take a moment" Kakashi said before closing the door. The two walked down the hall and down the stairs and out the exit.

"I probably already know what you're going to say, but lets see if I stand corrected" Zaria commented.

"Look I know it's four years late, but I wanted to say I'm sorry" Kakashi responded. Zaria didn't make any eye contact with Kakashi. She could feel the awkward tension between them. She was a little surprised that Kakashi was being nice to her. After all they never got alone when Obito was still alive.

"If this is about Obito's death then there's nothing you need to apologize for" Zaria replied. "Let's be honest you and I both knew one day he was going to get himself killed. I knew when the war broke out that this was going to be the thing that takes Obito away from me" Zaria finished. She surprised herself when she didn't get as emotional as she usually does when she talks about her brother.

"It's not just that. It's the way I treated you when you were a child" Kakashi stated. Now Zaria was completely shocked.

"But you hated me as a child. Why the sudden change in heart?" Zaria asked a little bit curious.

"You see, the last few moments I had with Obito...well we fought, but in that argument he made me realize something. He gave me the opportunity to see the world from his point of view and it was a lot nicer than my own" Kakashi explained. Zaria actually turned and looked at Kakashi while they were still walking. "When we were younger, on the day of Obito's death. I promised you that I wouldn't let that be in vein. I intend to keep that promise." Kakashi finished. Zaria gave Kakashi a small smile.

"You know, that day was the first time you were ever nice to me. I guess it's not easy dealing with death. Especially when it's someone close to you. Obito would have never admit it, but he always did think of you as a brother" Zaria commented. She then thought of something that plagued her mind. It was about her little cousin Sasuke.

"Hey um, just out of curiosity. How has Sasuke been doing? I know I can ask him myself, but I'd like to hear it from you" Zaria asked. She wanted to know how the murder of the entire Uchiha clan effected him.

"Well he's bent on a path of vengeance" Kakashi stated. Some how Zaria knew that was what Kakashi was going to say. "He claims he's going to kill Itachi" Kakashi continued. Yeah exactly the answer she was expecting. She knew Itachi fed his brother lies. Why else would he tell her not to tell Sasuke the truth. That he was better off in the dark.

"Why do you want to know anyways?" Kakashi asked not understanding her concern for Sasuke.

"Just curious that's all" Zaria replied not wanted to explain her side of the story to him. Kakashi knew there was more than what she was leading on. He didn't want to ruin the good term they were on so he just dropped it.

"We should probably get back now" Kakashi said as he turned around.

"You go on ahead, I have something else I want to do first" Zaria said as she disappeared. Kakashi shrugged his shoulders and made his way back to the inn.


	7. Chapter 7

The next day it was time to head out on the mission. Zaria had already gone ahead and secured a path for the rest to travel on. Team seven gathered there things and met back up with team thirteen with the exception of Raiden who was still in the hospital and Zaria. Team seven wasn't aware that Zaria had gone ahead already.

"Where's Zaria?" Sakura asked looking around for Zaria.

"She went ahead and cleared a path for us" Daisuke replied.

"By herself?" Naruto questioned. Both Daisuke and Satoru nodded their heads.

"Zaria may have only just become a chunin but she is claimed to be one of the strongest female ninjas in our village" Satoru commented with a smirk.

"Really?" Sakura questioned.

"Yeah well she comes from an elite clan so it's not that surprising" Satoru stated but then realized that was a bad idea to mention that.

"Elite clan? What clan?" Sasuke asked.

 _'Seriously they're related and he's the one asking_ ' Satoru said within his thoughts.

"Um she prefers to keep that a secret" Daisuke responded rescuing Satoru.

"Thanks" Satoru whispered to Daisuke. A large shadow of a bird appeared on the ground and everyone looked up at the sky and saw a huge hawk flying above.

"She's back?" Satoru questioned confused to why Zaria came back.

"What is that?" Sakura asked.

"That's Zaria and her hawk" Daisuke replied. "She uses that hawk in order to survey the land from the sky" he continued. Zaria descended down and leaped off of her hawk. The hawk was gone in a puff of smoke.

"You guys didn't even leave yet? I spent like two hours clearing a path for you people!" Zaria said annoyed.

"Calm down Zaria, we were just about to leave" Satoru defended.

"Well lets go then. We're wasting time by just standing here" Zaria said as she turned around and walked away. Daisuke and Satoru both sighed knowing this is was going to be a long mission. They followed Zaria and team seven followed behind. They were now outside the village. Zaria walked in front as if she was the leader. Kakashi watched Zaria from in the back. The little girl he knew as a child wasn't the same girl that stood in front of him today. He was actually impressed with whom she had become.

"What's her deal anyways? She has more of an attitude problem than Sasuke" Naruto questioned.

"Come again?" Sakura growled threatening to hit him.

"uh I didn't say anything" Naruto responded scared of Sakura.

"hn so annoying" Sasuke commented.

"Zaria had a rough childhood" Kakashi interjected. The three looked at him hoping he would continue his story.

"Kakashi-sensei, do you know her?" Sakura asked. Naruto and Sasuke were interested in hearing his answer.

"Well Yeah sort of" Kakashi replied. "She's the younger sister of a former team mate of mine" he continued. "Unfortunately he died in the third great ninja war" he finished. Zaria could hear him talk about it but chose to ignore it. She could tell he was being pretty vague on who he was talking about. She had told Kakashi that she would appreciate it if he didn't tell Sasuke the truth about who she was until she felt comfortable to do so herself. Her thoughts got cut off when she heard rustling in the trees. Zaria stopped in her tracks. The others did too, but were confused on why.

"Zaria what's wrong?" Kakashi asked.

"Can't you sense it? The enemy must know we're on to them" Zaria replied. "COME OUT I KNOW YOU'RE THERE! THERE'S NO SENSE IN HIDING NOW" she then shouted in the direction where she sensed the presence. The two ninja came out of hiding.

"Well look here the little girl spotted us. How impressive" one ninja said.

"Hey boss that girl is from the Uchiha clan" the other one whispered so only his partner can hear.

"Hmm interesting, at least I know she'll put up a fight" he mumbled. Daisuke got a good look at their headbands and saw they were from the Flower Village.

"You guys are flower ninja?" Daisuke questioned. The one ninja gave a sinister smirk.

"That's right, my name is Giichi a jonin from the flower village" he introduced.

"and I am Hiroki also a jonin from the flower village" he added.

"Jonin eh, this is going to be easy" Zaria said as she smirks cracking her knuckles. Sasuke was ready to join in but Satoru stopped him.

"What are yo-" Sasuke started.

"Zaria can handle this on her own, you'll just get in the way" Satoru said cutting off Sasuke who clenched his fist in frustration.

"So we're just supposed to stand her and watch?" Naruto questioned also frustrated.

"Don't worry, it won't take very long" Daisuke commented. The five watched the fight from a distance.

"Big talk for such a little girl" Giichi commented.

"That's cute, you think I'm just a little girl" Zaria retorted. While he assumed that Zaria was distracted Hiroki proceeded to attack.

"ninja art: exploding blossom jutsu" Hiroki shouted forming hand signs as flowers fell from the trees and started exploding near Zaria. She however didn't move. The five of them thought she got caught up in the explosion until the smoke cleared revealing Zaria standing behind the enemy ninja. Both turned around in shock. Zaria used Chidori and stabbed threw Giichi.

"She knows Chidori?!" Sasuke pondered as he was amazed with her skill.

"She must have copied it from me during a training session a long time ago" Kakashi responded.

"Copy?" Sasuke questioned. Now he was curios. He wanted to see how skilled Zaria was. He knew the only way you could copy a jutsu like that is if she had the sharingan. He knew that was impossible. Zaria was surprised to see that Giichi turned out to be a clone and got hit from behind. Zaria went down and hit the ground hard.

"Zaria!" Satoru shouted in panic. Zaria was then revealed to have been a crow genjutsu.

"Genjutsu huh? Not bad" Giichi commented. Zaria was no where in sight.

"Where did she go?" Hiroki asked.

"She's hiding nearby" Giichi responded. "Stand guard" he continued as his eyes wondered looking for Zaria's hiding spot. Suddenly streams of lighting came racing towards Giichi and Hiroki. Both got away in time but got caught up in Zaria's fireball jutsu.

' _Fireball?_ ' Sasuke thought. Giichi and Hiroki appeared to have used shadow clones. Now Zaria was caught off guard. She knew this fight would finish faster if she just used the sharingan, but she didn't want to.

"Zaria be careful they're using a camouflage jutsu" Satoru alerted activating his Kumogan to assist Zaria. His Kumogan allowed him to see chakra patterns which comes in handy when tracking someone.

Zaria nodded her head signaling to Satoru that she heard him. She didn't want to, but now she had no choice. If she wanted to win this battle, she had to use it. With one blink she activated her Sharingan. She turned her head to the group. Sasuke saw her eyes and was in disbelief.

 _'The sharingan? How? She's an Uchiha?'_ Sasuke was lost. All these questions raced inside his head.

Zaria found where the real ones were hiding and threw kunai to lure them out. It worked as she threw more kunai at them. She missed, but did it purposely.

"You know for the rumored Dragon of the Uchiha clan, you're skills aren't that impressive" Giichi commented. That commented confirmed Sasuke's suspicion. She was indeed from a member from the Uchiha clan. Sasuke didn't think that there was someone else that Itachi spared.

"oh please I haven't even gotten to that part yet" Zaria retorted.

"you're no match for us, you might as well give up now" Hiroki stated. Zaria smirked and tugged at the thread she had in her hand. It sprung a trap that she had set moments ago with the kunai. The thread wrapped around the two tying them together.

"What the-" Hiroki was caught off guard.

"Dammit, how did we not see that coming?" Giichi muttered.

"I'm going to show you how I got the title of Dragon of the Uchiha" Zaria stated forming a hand sign.

"Fire style: Dragon flame jutsu!" Zaria shouted before blowing out a flame that resembled a dragon. The two were burnt to death. Zaria brushed herself off and went back to her team.

"Sorry I took so long. I didn't think they would put up such a fight" Zaria commented.

"So you're a member of the Uchiha clan?" Sasuke asked. Everyone could feel the awkward tension in the air. Zaria knew she was eventually going to tell him whether she wanted to or not. Right now was not the time to discuss it.

"We'll talk about that later. Right now we have to focus on the mission." Zaria stated. She turned around so she didn't have to look at him. Everyone else was silent. At this point there was no way to predict on how this mission would turn out. Zaria could sense the distrust Sasuke had for her. Sasuke wanted his answers. Knowing Sasuke he'll probably pick a fight with Zaria in order for her to answer his questions.


	8. Chapter 8

The team was able to infiltrate the flower village and take the documents required by the Hidden Grass Village. Unfortunately they managed to encounter more ninja. This time everyone got involved in the fight. Sasuke sustained major injures that kept him from dodging an attack. Zaria with no time to spare threw herself in front of Sasuke in order to protect him. Everyone was shocked by Zaria's action. Zaria coughed up blood and fell to the ground.

"Zaria!" Satoru shouted running over to Zaria dodging attacks. Daisuke and Kakashi teamed up and were able to take the enemy out together. Satoru held Zaria in his arms. She was out cold.

"Why did you jump in front of Sasuke like that?" Satoru asked even though he wasn't going to get an answer. After they got what they needed they made there way back to the Hidden Grass Village. Satoru carried Zaria back. When they got back to the Grass Village Satoru brought Zaria and Sasuke to the hospital. Inside the hospital Satoru was greeted by his team mate Raiden in the hall way.

"Hey man, what are you doing here?" Raiden asked.

"Well I see you're better now" Satoru replied. "Anyways Zaria got badly injured on our recent mission with the Hidden Leaf in the Hidden Flower Village" Satoru explained. Raiden's eyes went wide. Zaria has never gotten heavily injured before.

"What happened? Raiden asked.

"She jumped in front of one of the genin who couldn't get out of the way in time." Satoru replied.

"Where's Daisuke-sensei and the leaf ninja you went on the mission with?" Raiden questioned.

"well I brought one of the leaf ninja here I don't know where Daisuke-sensei and the rest of them went" Satoru answered.

"So how's Zaria doing?"Raiden asked.

"She's fine, the injuries she received weren't life threatening according to the doctor" Satoru replied. "And before you ask the kid is fine too. He only had a damaged muscle in his right leg" he added.

"Well I'm glad Zaria is okay. The team wouldn't be the same without her" Raiden chuckled. Satoru smiled knowing it was true. Just then Daisuke and team seven walked up to Satoru and Raiden.

"Oh hey guys did you come to see Sasuke?" Satoru asked. Sakura nodded her head.

"We also came to see how Zaria was doing" Kakashi chimed in. "She gave us quite the scare on the battlefield" he added.

"well both of them are fine. Zaria got out of surgery awhile ago" Satoru stated.

"Oh good" Sakura commented with relief.

"by the way, hi I'm Raiden I'm the other member of team thirteen" Raiden introduced.

"Sasuke is in that room over there if you wanna see him" Satoru interjected pointing out Sasuke's room. Team seven nodded and went into Sasuke's room. Daisuke approached the boys and patted them on the shoulders.

"Come on, let's go see Zaria" Daisuke said escorting the boys to Zaria's room. The three of them walked in and saw Zaria has woken up.

"Hey I heard you did something stupid" Raiden laughed, however Zaria looked displeased.

"Not funny Raiden" Zaria retorted.

"How are you feeling?" Daisuke asked.

"A little sore that's about it" Zaria replied. "How's Sasuke?" She then asked.

"He's fine, it turned out to be a minor leg injury. He'll be up and walking by tomorrow" Satoru said with a smile.

"That's good" Zaria commented.

"I've been meaning to ask...why did you throw yourself in front of Sasuke like that? You could have gotten yourself killed." Daisuke questioned. He knew Zaria wasn't the one to be reckless like that. That kind of thing would be something Raiden would do. Zaria hesitated in answering. She clenched the fabric of her sheet. It was always painful talking about her family. Even if it wasn't about Obito.

"Zaria?" Satoru questioned. She had that same look on her face now like when she did when Raiden brought his sister to their first training session together.

"The short story is Sasuke is my cousin" Zaria started. She paused for a second to gather her thoughts. "About two years ago after the fall of the Uchiha clan Itachi, Sasuke's older brother came to find me and requested that I protect Sasuke for him" Zaria continued.

"Itachi Uchiha? Isn't he a member of the Akatsuki?" Raiden asked. Zaria nodded his head.

"That's precisely why he wants me to protect Sasuke. In all honestly I didn't think I would ever get the chance to even meet Sasuke. He was only just born when I was escorted out of the Hidden Leaf Village" Zaria responded.

"Does Sasuke know you two are related?" Raiden asked.

"Well he kinda found out during a fight on the way to the Flower Village" Zaria stated.

"Oh well that's awkward" Raiden commented.

"Trust me, you have no idea" Satoru chimed in.

"Oh shut up" Zaria shouted. Both boys laughed at her. Eventually Zaria gave in and giggled. Daisuke watched them as the three of them laughed together. This was a rare moment for them. Usually when the three of them are in a room together it's like a war in it's self. Raiden usually picks a fight with Satoru and Satoru usually eggs him on to where they actually end up fighting in hand to hand combat. Zaria was usually the one to break it up. Daisuke would just watch and see how it unfolds. It was nice to see them all get along this time even if it was just this one and only time.


	9. Chapter 9

Both Zaria and Sasuke were released from the hospital the next day. Raiden was released the day before. Sasuke was on crutches since he was told by the doctor to keep off his leg for awhile. Sakura held his stuff for him this way he's not carrying too much weight.

"It was a pleasure to meet you four. Hopefully our paths cross again soon" Daisuke stated. Kakashi nodded his head.

"Same to you" Kakashi responded. He looked at Zaria who looked back at him with a nod.

"I'm glad we're on good terms now. It was nice to see you after all this time" Zaria said with a smile. She walked up to Sasuke. He was confused to why she approached him.

"Sasuke one day, when I come to the Leaf Village there is something I want to show you" Zaria said with a smile.

"Sure" Was all Sasuke said. Zaria looked over at the other two from his squad.

"Despite us meeting under the conditions of a mission, it was nice meeting my cousin and his team mates" Zaria stated.

"Maybe when you come to the Leaf Village we can start over on a positive note" Sakura suggested.

"Yeah and we can get ramen!" Naruto exclaimed. Zaria giggled at Naruto.

"Sure Naruto" Zaria responded.

"All right!" Naruto shouted throwing his hands in the air. Zaria's team watched her interact with her cousin and his team. All of them smiled and laughed at Naruto.

"It's nice to see Zaria happy again" Daisuke commented.

"Yeah I don't even remember the last time I saw her this happy" Raiden also commented.

"Yeah me neither" Satoru said. "I agree sensei it is nice" he added. Zaria walked back over to her team.

"Well until next time, good luck to you four. Have a safe Journey home" Zaria stated as she waved goodbye to team seven. They stood there and watched as team seven made their way back to the Leaf Village.

"So what should we do now?" Raiden asked looking at both Zaria and Satoru. Zaria shrugged her shoulders and Satoru non nonchalantly whistled.

"Come on guys! You have to have some idea on what we should do" Raiden retorted.

"How about we all get something to eat, my treat' Daisuke suggested.

"All right Sensei! You rock!" Raiden exclaimed. Zaria giggled at Raiden's enthusiasm.

"How about that dumpling house near the market?" Satoru suggested.

"Sounds good to me" Zaria replied. Her favorite food was dumplings so she wasn't going to say no.

"Alright then let's go" Daisuke said leading the way to the dumpling house. One the way there they ran into members of team fifteen.

"Damn it Takada what do you want?" Raiden questioned with annoyance clear in his voice.

"Hey Raiden I heard they let you out of the hospital." Takada stated.

"So What?" Raiden retorted.

"Zaria how are you doing? We heard you were badly injured on your last mission" the girl asked.

"I'm fine Mizune thanks" Zaria replied.

"So what are you guys doing?" Takada asked.

"None of your business Takada!" Raiden yelled.

"You wanna fight I'll send you back to the hospital" Takada threatened.

"Bring it on!" Raiden growled at Takada.

"Whelp we're back to normal" Satoru whispered to Zaria. Zaria giggled in response.

"Can't you two go one day without fighting?" the other member of team fifteen asked.

"Shut up Haru! You wanna fight too" Takada retorted with an angry look on his face.

"If you don't knock it off I'll punch you through a building" Mizune threatened annoyed with Takada's antics.

"Fine, I'll back off for now" Takada said defeated. He looked back at Raiden. "Wait until the chunin exams come back. I'll be the one to fight you first" Takada added with a smirk on his face.

"Don't worry I plan on fighting you first" Raiden responded with the same smirk. Zaria and Mizune both sighed knowing what they have to deal with on a daily basis.

"Thank god I'm a chunin cause there would be no way I would be able to handle them in the exams again" Zaria stated.

"Yeah I agree. Takada is always starting fights with everyone it's embarrassing to be on the same team with him" Mizune responded.

"Yeah, he thinks he's so great, meanwhile we're the ones that always have to step in and rescue him" Haru interjected.

"Yeah I feel bad for you guys. I'm lucky that Raiden only starts fights with either Satoru or Takada" Zaria said.

"Yeah Raiden isn't as bad as Takada" Haru replied.

"I actually like Raiden better than Takada" Mizune added.

"Yeah if Takada was on my team I'd probably kill him" Satoru interjected. Zaria and Mizune giggled. Haru just gave a small smirk.

"Come on guys! We have training to do" The sensei of team fifteen yelled.

:Coming Sensei" Mizune yelled as she grabbed Takada and pulled him by his arm. Haru followed them from behind.

"So about those dumplings" Daisuke questioned getting everyone back on track.

"Yeah let's go!" Raiden shouted walking towards the dumpling house. "I'm starving!" he then exclaimed.

"What else is new" Satoru muttered.

"So true" Zaria mumbled back. Satoru and Zaria smiled at each other and then watched Raiden race towards the dumpling house.

"I'm glad we got Raiden instead of Takada, poor Mizune and Haru" Zaria said randomly.

"haha yeah like I said. I would probably kill him and I'm not kidding either" Satoru responded.

"Honestly I would probably help you" Zaria replied.

"Yeah and so would Raiden. He would take a first crack at him" Satoru chuckled.

"And to think Daisuke-sensei says our teamwork sucks" Zaria giggled.

"Yeah right. At least we can all agree on who we all want to kill" Satoru commented.

"so true" Zaria commented.

"Come on guys! You're walking too slow" Raiden shouted to his team mates and sensei.

"We're coming Rai" Zaria shouted jogging towards Raiden. Satoru and Daisuke followed behind.


	10. Chapter 10

It was the three year anniversary of Obito's death. Zaria sat on her bed hugging her knees as she stared at Obito's goggles that sat on her dresser. She skipped out on her training session stating she just wanted to be alone. She remembered all the times she would watch him train in his spare time. One of her favorite moments was watching him mastering the fireball jutsu.

Obito stood at the edge of the dock as he made hand signs to form the fireball. Zaria watched from a safe distance. She noticed he had burn marks on his face from multiple attempts at the jutsu. Her grandmother gave her a first aid kit just in case Obito went a little over board with his training. She watched as Obito made another attempt to create a large fireball. The attempt was a lot bigger than before. Zaria was amazed and cheered him on. Obito stopped to catch his breath.

"That was amazing big brother!" Zaria exclaimed as she ran over to hug Obito. Obito chuckled as he embraced her.

"You really think so?" Obito questioned. Zaria looked up at him and nodded with a huge smile on her face.

"Do you think you can teach me how to do the fire ball jutsu?" Zaria asked so innocently. Obito chuckled again and pat Zaria on the head.

"You're a little too young right now" Obito answered. Although he did admire his sister's enthusiasm.

"That's no fair! Grandma said you learned it when you were five years old" Zaria voiced a little annoyed that her brother wouldn't teach her.

"Tell you what. When you start the academy, I'll teach you all sorts of jutsus" Obito bargained. Zaria's eyes glistened with happiness.

"Really?!" Zaria exclaimed hoping her brother wasn't lying to her. Obito smiled and nodded his head making Zaria squeal with utter joy. Obito loved making his sister happy. Zaria then realized something and frowned.

"What's the matter?" Obito asked curious to why his sister's mood changed so quick.

"I don't start the Academy for another 4 years. You'll probably be really busy by then." Zaria uttered in sadness. Obito sighed as he crouched down to her level.

"Don't you worry. You're the most important thing to me. If I have to make some time to teach my sister how to be an amazing ninja like her older brother I will!" Obito proposed trying to make his sister happy again. Zaria looked at Obito and saw all the burn marks on his face. She walked over to the spot where she was standing earlier and grabbed the first aid kit.

"What are you doing Zaria?" Obito inquired still crouched down. He had no idea what his sister was doing. She walked back over with the first aid kit in hand.

"Grandma gave me a first aid kit just in case you accidentally burnt yourself." Zaria responded. She opened up the kit and took out a small jar of ointment and used her tiny finger to rub it on Obito's cheeks. Usually he would object to this, but it was his sister. He knew she enjoyed taking care of him just as much as he loves taking care of her. She used both her hands to place a bandage on each cheek.

"There all better" Zaria said as she finished. Obito reached out and have his sister a hug.

"Thank you Zaria" Obito said to his sister.

"Oh wait I forgot something!" Zaria voiced. Obito looked at her confused.

"What is it?" Obito asked. Zaria gave her brother a peck on the cheek.

"There now it's all better" Zaria announced with a smile. Obito smiled back at her.

"What was that for?"Obito asked. Zaria had never done that before.

"I wanted to kiss it better. I don't want my big brother to be hurt" Zaria claimed. His little sister was so adorable. She just wanted to put a smile on his face. That was exactly what she did. Obito loved his little sister. She clearly loved him just as much and he was grateful for that. He thought Zaria would grow to resent him for constantly being away from her. He was glad that didn't happen. Obito couldn't stand it when she got mad at him. Although that was very rare.

It was moments like those that Zaria enjoyed the most. She missed those very moments she shared with her brother. When he became a ninja they didn't spend as much time together like they used to while he was just an academy student. She still remembers Obito promising her that he would teach her the fireball jutsu and other jutsu along with it. She was disappointed knowing now that will never happen. It's worse when she relives her memories just by watching Raiden with his little sister Harumi. They were the exact representation of her and Obito. It sucks knowing she'll never get to see her brother again. She was told that his body was never recovered during the war so he doesn't even have a proper grave. Minato told her the day of the funeral that his name was carved in the memorial stone for ninja that were killed in action.

"Obito, you lied to me. You promised to teach me the fireball jutsu when I entered the academy. Now I'm a chunin and you still haven't taught me the fireball jutsu" Zaria muttered to herself. She choked back a tear not wanting to cry again. She cried a lot of tears over her brother. Usually her brother would be the one to wipe away her tears instead of causing him. Zaria got up from her bed and went into the bathroom. She turned on the sink and splashed cold water onto her face. She looked up into the mirror and saw how red and puffy her eyes got from crying. She took a deep breath and turned off the sink. She stood there with her arms holding onto the sink. She got goosebumps from her hands coming in contact with the cold marble of the sink. Zaria suddenly got an idea. On her mission she told Sasuke that one day she was going to come to the Leaf Village and show Sasuke something. While she was in the Leaf Village she can go pay her respects to the memorial stone in the park and put some flowers down for Obito. Zaria ran back into her room and went through her closet. If she was going to do this, there was something else she had to honor too. She dug through clothes she usually never wears to find her purple sleeveless shirt. It was the only shirt she owned that bore the Uchiha crest on the backside. When Shisui brought her to the Hidden Grass Village she stopped wearing clothes that represented her clan on them. It was mostly because of all the bad memories that went along with it. Despite that she actually loved her family. Daisuke gave the team three days off after today. She was going to use that time to travel to the Leaf Village to see Sasuke and to pay respects to her family.


	11. Chapter 11

So the next day had arrived and Zaria prepared for her journey to the Hidden Leaf Village. She put on her Purple shirt with the Uchiha crest on the back and a pair of green shorts that barely touched her knees. She threw her hair up into a ponytail and tied on her headband. Just encase she ran into trouble she brought some ninja tools with her only to be safe. This was her first time leaving the Grass Village on her own and also her first time back in the Leaf Village in over three years. She wondered how much the village had change since then. If the people she knew as a child were still around. She knew Kakashi was still alive since they worked together on her last mission. When she saw Sasuke it was amazed at how much he had grown up. At least there was people she knew and didn't have to worry about walking into a familiar village yet filled with strangers. She left her house and made her way to the common area where the ninja gathered when they weren't assigned any missions. She walked up to Daisuke and her team.  
"Hey guys" Zaria greeted with a wave. The three of them turned to look at her and all three of them cocked an eyebrow in confusion. Zaria returned the expression not understanding what was wrong.

"Is something wrong?" Zaria asked wondering what they're thinking.

"No nothing's wrong. It's just that you look different" Raiden answered on everyone's behalf.

'Is this because of where you're going?" Daisuke inquired. Zaria nodded her head in response.

"Wait, Where are you going?" Satoru asked. Zaria didn't mention to anyone except Daisuke about her plans.

"Well since we have some time off I thought I'd go to the Leaf Village to see my cousin Sasuke and also go to the cemetery and pay my respects to my family" Zaria replied.

"Okay, but why are you dressed like that and not in the usual clothes you wear?" Raiden questioned confused to why she changed her entire look just for a trip to the Leaf Village. Zaria turned around and pointed out the crest on the back of her shirt.

"It's the only shirt I own that has the Uchiha crest on it and still fits me properly" Zaria answered. Raiden nodded his head in understatement. "Well if I want to get to the Leaf Village before sun down I better leave now" Zaria added as she walked away.

"Good luck Zaria!" Raiden shouted.

"Be safe!" Daisuke called after Raiden. Zaria passed through the gates of the Hidden Grass and entered the forest. It wasn't long until she came across the bridge. It was the bridge that got her brother killed. She had flashbacks of her and Obito but quickly shook them away. She didn't want to let thoughts distract her on her journey. She needed to be focused if she wanted to make it there in one piece or at least alive. Usually it takes ninja at least a day to travel back and forth from the Grass Village to the Leaf Village or the other way around. However, Zaria was a lot faster than most ninja. What takes most ninja a whole day only takes her about twelve hours or less. She managed to get to the Leaf Village sometime in the afternoon. She passed Ichiraku Ramen Shop where Naruto was having a bowl of ramen. As he was slurping down his third bowl of ramen he looked up and saw someone he hasn't seen in a while. He quickly recognized who it was and raced out of the ramen shop and chased down Zaria.

"HEY ZARIA!" Naruto called out to her from behind. Zaria stopped in her tracks and turned around. Naruto approached her catching his breath.

"Oh hey Naruto. What's up?" Zaria greeted with a smile. It's been awhile since she had seen him.

"What are you doing in the Leaf Village?" Naruto asked. "Are you on some type of mission?" he continued to ask.

"I wouldn't call it a mission, but I just came for a visit" Zaria answered. Naruto looked around and noticed it was just Zaria here.

"Where's your team mates?" Naruto questioned. Zaria giggled before answering.

"They're back home. I came by myself" Zaria replied.

"Oh okay then" Naruto corresponded. Naruto turned to the flower shop where he saw Sakura and Ino talking. Naruto called out to Sakura. Sakura turned around and looked at Naruto with a questioning look on her face.

"LOOK WHO CAME TO VISIT!" Naruto shouted waving down Sakura and hinting at Zaria. Zaria just stood there and gave a subtle wave with a small smile. Sakura smiled and jogged over to Naruto and Zaria.

"Zaria, you're all better now?!" Sakura exclaimed as she approached Zaria. She giggled and nodded in response.

"Yeah I happen to know some medical ninjutsu so I healed pretty quickly" Zaria told Sakura.

"You're a medical ninja? That's so cool" Naruto shouted.

"So how has Sasuke been doing? Has his injuries healed as well" Zaria inquired knowing Sasuke was also injured on the mission.

"Yes, he's made a full recovery thanks to Lady Tsunade" Sakura replied.

"Oh, well that's good" Zaria said with a smile.

"Do you come here to see Sasuke?" Naruto asked.

"Well yeah that and to pay respects to my family" Zaria answered. She looked around the village and was amazed that nothing had physically changed.

"I'm glad the village hasn't changed" Zaria uttered.

"I think he's in the training grounds with Kakashi-sensei" Sakura corresponded. Zaria nodded her head.

"Thanks Sakura! I'll see you guys later" Zaria said as she walked away. Remembering where the training grounds were located she made her way there. She looked all around on her way there as she made her way to the training grounds. She stumbled upon the dumpling shop Obito would take her to right before going on a mission or just coming back from one. She gave a faint smile remembering going there one last time with Obito and his team right before the start of the third great ninja war. She finally made it to the training grounds and saw Sasuke practice his chidori with Kakashi's supervision. Kakashi noticed her presence and gave a small nod. Zaria returned the nod and took a deep breath before approaching them.

"It's nice to see you again Zaria" Kakashi said. Sasuke flinched a little before turning around.

"It's good to see you guys too" Zaria corresponded with a smile. "Sasuke I'm glad you're leg has fully healed" she added.

"Yeah" Sasuke replied.

"So what's with the sudden visit?" Kakashi asked. He had no idea why she was here. Zaria looked at Kakashi annoyed. Sasuke followed Zaria's annoyed gaze to Kakashi.

"Really? You of all people should know why I'm here" Zaria voiced. Sasuke looked at the both of them confused. Kakashi looked at her confused. "Think about what day it is" Zaria added trying to guide Kakashi to the answer. After pondering it for a moment Kakashi came to a realization. It was the anniversary of Obito's death. He had been so busy that he actually forgot.

"Right...Obito" Kakashi responded. "I guess you're also here to see the rest of the clan too" Kakashi added.

"Yeah, this is my first time back here since the incident" Zaria answered. "I even decided to wear my shirt with the Uchiha crest on it" she added as she turned around to show Kakashi and Sasuke.

"So you really are a member of the Uchiha clan" Sasuke questioned. Zaria simply nodded her head.

Then she remembered what she wanted to ask Sasuke. There was an actual reason to see him other than to see if his injury had healed.

"Sasuke, there's something I want to ask of you" Zaria uttered to Sasuke.

"What is it?" Sasuke asked wanting to know what she wanted to know.

"I heard rumors that you want to take revenge on Itachi...is it true?" Zaria requisitioned. Sasuke clenched his fist in anger.

"He deserves to die after what he did" Sasuke answered. "I'm going to restore the Uchiha clan" he continued. Zaria was actually concerned for Sasuke's well being, but wasn't going to voice it. Kakashi could see the concern in her eyes.

"Sasuke I think we're finished for the day" Kakashi announced dismissing Sasuke. Sasuke stuffed his hands in his pocket and walked away.

"Whatever, I'm going home then" Sasuke announced as he was walking away. That just left Zaria and Kakashi. He walked away too but motioned for Zaria to follow him. Zaria nodded and followed Kakashi. They walked to the park and stopped at the memorial stone.

"I assume you wanted to come here first before going to the cemetery" Kakashi noted. Like Sasuke he had is hands in his pockets as he stood in front of the stone. Zaria read through the names carved onto the stone. There were a bunch of names added since the last time she was here. She finally came across her brother's name, Obito Uchiha. Zaria gave a faint smile. Kakashi watched Zaria from the side. He knew that it was painful for her to be here. Meanwhile he didn't see the pain in her eyes. What he saw seemed like relief. As if she had finally gotten her closure just by standing in front of this stone and seeing her brother's name.

"You know I still have those pair of goggles that you gave me the day he died" Zaria voiced. "They sit on my dresser right next a picture of Obito and me from when I was little" she added. To her surprise not a single tear formed in her eye. She assumed that she cried out all her tears back home.

"I never told you this, but we started becoming actual friends right before he died" Kakashi stated nervous on how Zaria would react.

"I kinda figured that when he gave you his eye" Zaria responded with a small giggle.

"Yeah you're right" Kakashi noted.

"At least I know a small piece of him is still living on" she uttered with a soft smile. She couldn't tell but Kakashi returned the smile. Zaria stepped away from the stone and turned around.

"I'm going to go see the rest of my family now. If it's okay with you I'd like to do that alone" Zaria stated not looking at Kakashi.

"Right, I understand. I'll leave you be now" Kakashi told Zaria right before he disappeared. Just as Kakashi left the tears that she didn't think she had finally formed in her eyes. They waited for Kakashi to leave first before they began running down her cheeks.

 _'Obito I hope you're proud of the ninja I've become'_ Zaria thought as she looked up to the sky.


	12. Chapter 12

Zaria was still in the Leaf Village. She had promised Sasuke a week ago that she was going to show him something when she came to the Leaf Village. Usually Sasuke would be training with Kakashi in their usual spot, but Zaria asked if she could borrow Sasuke for the day. Kakashi obliged by her request and decided to take care of other business in the meantime. Kakashi hadn't informed Sasuke that training was canceled for the day, so Sasuke waited and waited for his sensei to show up. He was surprised to see that Zaria had shown up instead.

"What are you doing here?" Sasuke asked. He didn't think that she was still in the village. He didn't know why she was still here.\

"Oh come on...you're not happy to see someone of your own clan still alive?" Zaria teased. The Uchiha clan was a very sensitive subject to Sasuke so he didn't take too kindly to it.

"Just tell me why you're here" Sasuke barked in anger. Zaria could clearly see that Sasuke was serious just like Kakashi when he was a child.

"Remember awhile back when I said I had something to show you?" Zaria asked.

"What about it? What do you have to show me?" Sasuke asked in reply. Zaria turned around with her back facing Sasuke.

"Come with me?" Zaria called before disappearing. Sasuke gave an annoyed sigh before following her. He realized that as he was following her, that this was the path he took to go home. That's exactly where she led him. Zaria stopped in front of Sasuke's home.

"What is it you have to show me in my home?" Sasuke questioned confused to why she brought him back home.

"Just follow me" Zaria replied walking through the Uchiha Estate. Being back here brought back memories. Zaria had a faint smile on her face that wasn't visible to Sasuke.

"Look do you plan on telling me what's going on? I don't have time for stupid games" Sasuke stated annoyed with Zaria.

"Stop asking questions and just follow me" Zaria replied not even looking at him. Sasuke stopped in his tracks. He wanted answers and Zaria wasn't giving him any.

"I told you I'm not in the mood for stupid games. So just tell me what's going on!" Sasuke demanded. Zaria took a few steps before pausing for a moment.

"Like I told you. Just follow me and all your stupid questions will be answered" Zaria responded with a cold attitude. She turned her head so she could look at Sasuke. She could see that he was frustrated. "All I can tell you is we're going some where sacred to the Uchiha family" Zaria finished turning her head back around and continued walking. After another minute of walking they had reached their destination. Zaria had led him to the abandoned building where the Leaf Police force claimed as their headquarters. There was still caution tape on the doorway almost blocking entrance. Sasuke was confused to why she brought him here. Zaria lifted up the tape and ducked under the tape and held it from the inside to let Sasuke through.

"What are we doing in here?" Sasuke inquired. Zaria ignored him and continued on. Sasuke was still annoyed with her ignoring him. Zaria opened up an passageway and led him down a flight of stairs into a dark room. She lit the room using the phoenix flower jutsu.

"So is this what you have to show me?" Sasuke questioned.

"Sasuke I told you to stop asking stupid questions" Zaria responded. "No this isn't what I have to show you. It's the room underneath that I want to show you" she continued. She activated her sharingan in order to locate the trap door leading to the other room. She found it in the right hand corner of the room they were in. She went over and removed the wooden tile off the floor and leaned it against the wall. Sasuke stood there confused. . In all the times he spent in this building as a child, he never knew that this place existed.

"What is that?" Sasuke asked. Zaria sat on the floor with her feet on the second step of the ladder.

"This is what I want to show you" Zaria replied as she climbed down the ladder. There was a bit of nervousness in Sasuke but he still followed behind. He stood in front of the pathway ans sighed before climbing onto the ladder. He descended downwards until he reached the very bottom. It was pitch black so he couldn't see where he was nor the ladder he was on. His foot touched the floor, which meant that he finally reached the bottom of the ladder. He couldn't see but could hear Zaria's footsteps, which meant she was nearby. Zaria performed a hand sign, which lit up the torches in the room. Sasuke could see the scrolls and stone slabs mounted on the walls. There was writing on the stones that he could not understand. Sasuke was in awe and disbelief. He didn't know his own clan kept secrets like this.

"This is the Sacred Sharingan Shrine" Zaria announced with a soft voice trying to be respectful.

The Sacred...Sharingan...Shrine" Sasuke repeated amazed by what's in front of him. Zaria nodded in response.

"You'll need to use your sharingan to read the contents of the shrine" Zaria stated. Sasuke nodded his head and quickly activated his Sharingan. Her sharingan was still activate from earlier.

"What is all of this?" Sasuke asked. He picked up one of the scrolls and just stared at it.

"Everything you need to know about both the Sharingan and the Mangekyou Sharingan" Zaria answered. "It's all written in code which is why I said you'll need your sharingan for this. Only members of the Uchiha clan with an activated sharingan can see the contents of these scrolls and the engravings on the stones" She finished. Sasuke opened the scroll in his hand and began reading. Though he was confused to why she was showing him this.

"So why did you want to show this to me so badly?" Sasuke asked with confusion present in his voice. He looked up at Zaria who was staring at the walls.

"Because you'll need it for when you finally face Itachi" Zaria replied turning herself so she can face Sasuke. His eyes went wide. So that's why she wanted to know if he was going to confront Itachi. She knew all along that Sasuke was going to be the one to avenge the Uchiha clan.

"So you already know. That's why you asked the other day if I was going to fight Itachi" Sasuke stated trying to confirm his thoughts.

"If you want to defeat your brother you'll need to be at least one step ahead of him. Your brother is a genius, however he doesn't know the true power of the sharingan. He only knows what he's been told by the elders of the Uchiha clan including your father." Zaria stated. Sasuke had to admit that she was right. The only way to defeat Itachi was to out smart him. Though he was still confused to why she was helping him. Zaria sensed his confusion and addressed it.

"You're my little cousin Sasuke and honestly I never did like your brother. We're Uchiha, we stick together no matter what. Even if it involves taking down someone of our own blood" Zaria explained.


	13. Chapter 13

It was the last day that Zaria was in the Leaf Village. She spent the last few hours she had in front of the memorial stone in the park. So much has changed since the last time she was in this village. Sadly a lot of names have been added to this stone. Most of the names were people she knew as a child. She saw her brothers name. It was one of the few that quickly jumped out of her. Then a few names down was Minato, her brother's sensei who died as the fourth hokage. She walked around the stone as she was reading all the names. As she was reading down the list she came across a name that stood out to her. Rin Nohara, she was the girl on Obito and Kakashi's team and the girl that Obito was in love with. The girl that he died protecting. Zaria frowned knowing the people that meant a lot to her were dead now.

"I thought I would find you here" a voice said popping up behind her. She flinched and turned around to see who it was.

"Seriously Kakashi, you know I hate it when you do that" Zaria complained.

"Sorry I didn't mean to scared you" he responded as he stood next to her. "So did you show him?" he then asked. Zaria nodded in response.

"What are you doing here anyways?" Zaria asked.

"Well I knew you were leaving soon so I wanted to say goodbye before you left" Kakashi replied. There was one thing bothering her. Why was Kakashi nice to her all of a sudden? When they were children Kakashi couldn't stand her. He would often yell at Obito for bringing her to their training sessions and always insulted her. Now there was awkward tension in the air. Kakashi could sense it and confronted Zaria about it.

"Is something wrong?" Kakashi asked. Zaria could feel him looking at her and turned her head to the side so she didn't have to make eye contact with him.

"There's been one thing bothering me for a while" Zaria stated. Kakashi was a little concerned now.

"What is it?" he asked wanting to know.

"Why are you being nice to me all of a sudden ?' Zaria asked. She turned her head a little. Kakashi could see the sad look in her eyes. He knew she was serious and could understand her concern.

"I felt bad for how I treated you as a child. When we went on that mission together last week I was amazed by how much you've grown up. In that fight with the two jonin from the Flower Village I was impressed with your fighting skills." Kakashi stated. Zaria looked at him with shock. Kakashi turned away from Zaria. "Honestly when we were younger I never expected you to become the ninja that you are now. I thought you would fight like Obito, but from what I saw your skills far surpassed that of your brothers" He finished his statement and started walking away but stopped for a second. "Obito would be proud of you" Kakashi said before disappearing. Zaria gave a faint smile. That meant a lot coming from someone like Kakashi. She took one last glance before walking away from the stone.

"HEY ZARIA!" she heard a voice yell from the distance. She turned to see that it was Naruto.

"Are you leaving now?" Naruto asked as he approached her. Zaria nodded as Naruto looked at her with disappointment. Zaria smirked as she looked at Naruto. She ruffled his hair a little.

"Don't worry Naruto. I promise that this isn't the last time you'll see me. Maybe we'll go on another mission together or Maybe if your team ever comes to the Grass Village I can introduce you to my favorite ramen shop that's almost as good as Ichiraku" Zaria said with a giggle. Naruto's eyes lit up with joy.

"Really! I love ramen!" Naruto shouted with happiness. Zaria giggled at his joy.

"I have to go now. I'll see you later Naruto. Tell Sakura I said goodbye when you see her" Zaria said as she walked away.

"Will do! Bye Zaria!" Naruto responded waving at Zaria. She walked through the village gates and entered the forest. Her goal was to be home by Sunset. It was only noon and with her speed she had plenty of time to get home before the sun went down. Time had past as she made her way through the forest. Zaria looked up at the sky and saw the sun began to set. She turned her attention ahead and saw the bridge. She was almost home. Zaria crossed the bridge and could hear the loud rush of the river beneath her. The wood of the bridge creaked under her feet. It almost sounded as if the bridge could collapse on her at any second. The wood was old and the bridge hasn't been maintained since it was repaired after the last war. Finally she had reached the entrance to the Hidden Grass Village. She was greeted by the ninja guarding the gate from the outside. They let her through with a nodded indicating that it was okay for her to enter. Zaria passed through and went to her house to drop off her stuff. When she entered the house she noticed Tosen in the kitchen cleaning up the dishes.  
"ah Zaria you made it back safely" Tosen greeted. Zaria nodded with a smile. "How was it?" He asked putting down the plate and towel.

"It all looked the same, but almost everyone I knew as a child has died" Zaria stated. She still kept the smile on her face not wanting to look sad in front of Tosen.

"Well that's terrible" Tosen commented. He had a sincere look on his face.

"Yeah I guess that's what happens when a war breaks out" Zaria replied with a faint chuckle. Tosen could see emotional and mentally wise she has improved from when Shisui first brought her to him. He was impressed. "It's nice to see the village hasn't changed at all even after being rebuilt multiple times" Zaria said with a smile.

"Well I'm glad you got to go back home for awhile. It seemed as if you were home sick for awhile. I had hoped that you visiting the Leaf Village would put your mind at ease and I can see it has" Tosen stated with a smile. He was happy to see Zaria happy for the first time in a while.

"Yeah, thanks Tosen" Zaria replied as she walked over and gave him a hug.


	14. Chapter 14

Obito and his team were being sent out on a mission to aid people in the Land of Snow. At the time Zaria was only four years old. He decided to say goodbye to his sister at home than have her chase him down at the gate. Zaria was very attached to Obito and hated seeing him leave all the time. She always clung to him making it difficult for him to leave. This day was no different. Zaria clung onto Obito's leg not wanting to let go.

"Zaria please let go. I have to go now" Obito pleaded. Zaria had tears running down her face as she tightened her grip on his leg. Obito sighed knowing this wasn't going to be easy. Shisui stepped in and tried to pry Zaria off of Obito.

"Alright Zaria, your big brother has to go now?" Shisui said and he tugged at Zaria. He was able to free Obito from his sister's grip. Zaria cried as Shisui held her. He knew that if he let go she would go right back to Obito. Shisui tried to calm her down.

"It's okay Zar. Your brother will be back soon" Shisui cooed. Obito frown seeing how sad he made his sister every time he had to leave for a mission. He stepped forward and placed a hand gently on her head.

"Shisui's right, I'll be back soon. For now Shisui will be taking care of you" Obito stated with a smile. He tried to make his sister happy the best he can.

"Yeah. I get to be your big brother now" Shisui teased. Zaria tried pushing Shisui away.

"No! I want Obito!" Zaria exclaimed. She reached out to her brother.

"I told you you can't tease her like that Shisui" Obito commented with a chuckle.

"I can't help it. She just absolutely adores you" Shisui chuckled.

"Well of course she does. I'm her big brother!" Obito said happily. Zaria giggled loudly. Obito grabbed his bag off the floor and put it on.

"Okay I'm really running late now. I gotta go" Obito said. He gave Zaria a little peck on the cheek making Zaria giggle. "Be good for Shisui while I'm away okay" Obito stated giving his sister a smile. Zaria glanced at Shisui for a second then looked back at her brother. She gave him a shy nod.

"It's okay we'll have a lot of fun" Shisui said to Zaria to try and make her happy. Obito said his goodbye and walked out of the door. Now it was just Shisui and Zaria. Shisui was supposed to train with Itachi today but he had to watch Zaria. She didn't like Sasuke or he would send her to go play with him. He was left with no choice but to cancel training for the day. He didn't want to put Obito's little sister in any danger. In fact he always thought of Zaria as his little sister to himself, even if Zaria didn't like him.

"So what do we do now Sui?" Zaria asked. For some reason she liked calling Shisui Sui. He didn't know why but he thought it was adorable. He chuckled before answering her question.

"How about we go for a walk?" Shisui suggested. He still held Zaria in his arms. He knew for a fact that Zaria liked going on walks. Zaria smiled and wiggled her way out of Shisui's grip. She reached out and grabbed onto his pinkie with her small hand. Shisui smiled seeing that Zaria was at least warming up to being with him while her brother was gone. They left the estate and walked around the park that was near by. Zaria walked next to Shisui while still holding his hand.

"Do you know when big brother will be home Sui?" Zaria asked.

"He'll be back in a week Zaria don't worry" Shisui responded. He looked down at Zaria and saw the sad look on her face. She really missed her brother. He sighed before crouching down to her level.  
"Zaria I promise you the days will fly by so fast you won't even realize that it's been a week." Shisui said trying to cheer up Zaria again. She wasn't crying this time, but he could see she wasn't happy at all.

"You promise?" Zaria questioned. Shisui nodded with a smile. Zaria smiled back at him and gave him a hug. That was the first time Zaria ever gave him a hug. He was shocked, but happy that Zaria finally liked him enough to even give him a hug. Shisui noticed that the sun began to go down. He decided that it was a good idea to go back home. He picked Zaria up and carried her back home. When they got back to the Uchiha Estate Shisui took Zaria back to her house and up to her room. He knew that it was Obito's job to tuck her in at night so he asked if it was okay before continuing.

"It's okay Sui. You can tuck me in" Zaria said innocently. He felt a little honored that Zaria was letting him do something that usually only her brother was allowed to do. He tucked her in and gave her a kiss on the forehead. Zaria giggled in response. Shisui smiled at her. Zaria yawned and she cuddled her teddy bear. He wanted to tell her a bedtime story. However he knew that was crossing the line. Obito would be mad at him if he found out that he told his sister a bedtime story. "Good night Sui" Zaria said softly before falling asleep.

"Good night kiddo" Shisui replied and closed the door quietly not wanting to wake her up.

Shisui was right. A week past like it was nothing. Zaria hopped up and down excitingly waiting for her brother to return. He was due back in the afternoon. She knew Kushina liked to cook her husband and his students breakfast the morning that they return. Shisui had to run some errands and decided to take little Zaria with him. They walked downtown to the markets so Shisui could do some shopping for his grandmother. The afternoon came and that's when Zaria spotted someone. Her eyes grew big as she smiled real wide.

"BIG BROTHER!" Zaria ran away from Shisui.

"HEY ZARIA!WAIT!" Shisui called out after her as he ran after her. Obito caught Zaria and lifted her up into his arms.

"I see someone's happy to see" Obito teased. Zaria nodded fast as she still had a big smile on her face. She gave her brother a tight hug.

"I missed you big brother" Zaria said burying her head into his shoulder. Obito chuckled in response.

"Glad to see you're back Obito" Shisui commented.

"Yeah, the mission was easy. We barely did any fighting" Obito stated. "How was she while I was gone" he asked nodding his head gesturing to his sister.

"She actually did pretty well. She didn't try to fight me at all. In fact the first night you were gone she let me tuck her in bed" Shisui said proud of himself. Obito was in disbelief.

"Zaria, I thought I was the only one allowed to tuck you in at night. He didn't tell you a bedtime story too did he?" Obito asked. Shisui laughed at Obito.

"Don't worry I left that part for you. I figured you wouldn't be to crazy about me taking your thing away" Shisui interjected. Both of them laughed. Zaria didn't know why they were laughing but seeing her brother again made her happy.

 _ **A/N:** I usually don't do authors notes but I just want to let you guys know that there is a poll on my profile where you can decide on who you want featured more in this fan fiction. _


	15. Chapter 15

It wasn't fair that Kakashi became a chunin and I didn't. Now Rin gives him all of her attention. Watching those two interact hurts. I want to be the one that Rin watches over. There's nothing special about Kakashi anyways. It was so embarrassing having Rin see me fail. What makes it worse is Kakashi fought the same guy I did and was able to beat him with no problem. When he won I could see Rin's eye's sparkle. I frowned knowing she would never look at me that way. After the exams were over I went to lie on the bench just outside of the academy. I didn't feel like going home yet. I closed my eyes for a minute.

"So this is where you went" I heard someone say. It sounded like Rin. I opened my eyes to see her face right in front of mine facing the opposite direction. I blushed and scrambled to get up. "Don't worry about failing the chunin exams. We'll just have to try harder for next year." Rin said with enthusiasm. She had a huge smile on her face. The one thing I admired was that even though she admired Kakashi, she still cared for me.

"Yeah" I cheered thankful that Rin had my back.

"Just remember I'm always watching" Rin said. She looked so beautiful I couldn't help but blush. I had made her promise a while ago to always watch over me. I'm happy she's still keeping that promise.

"To think when you finally become a chunin not only will I be proud of you, but your little sister too" She said with a smile. That's when I realized something. I forgot about my sister. I had told her that when I came home, I was going to come home a chunin. She going to be disappointed when I tell her that I'm still a genin. That's when I frowned. Rin seemed to notice. "What's wrong Obito?" I heard her ask. I hesitated before I answered.

"It's just that I promised Zaria that I was going to come home a chunin today" I answered. I looked away from Rin. I didn't want her to see how upset I was. Zaria means so much to me and I hate disappointing her.

"I don't think she'll think any less of you. She's only five years old I doubt it'll matter to her. You're her big brother. She'll love and admire you no matter what" She responded trying to cheer me up. It was nice to see her try. She was right though. No matter how poorly I did, Zaria always cheered me on. She always managed to put a smile on my face when I was upset. Just like Rin did now. I decided it was time to go home. I needed to see my sister. I said good bye to Rin as I made my way home. When I walked through the doors of my house I was greeted by my grandmother.

"So how did it go" she asked as she was getting dinner ready.

"I failed" I responded giving her a serious look. She knew I was bothered by it just by the look in my eyes.

"Don't worry my boy, there's always next year" She responded as she turned her attention back to her pot.

"Do you know where Zaria is? Usually she's the first one to greet me when I come home" I asked noticing my sister was missing.

"She's upstairs taking a nap" she announced as I watched her stir the contents of the pot. I nodded and proceeded to walk up the stair. When I got to the top of the stairs I went to Zaria's room. I opened the door slowly not wanting to make any noise. When I walked in I could see she was still sleeping. She looked so peaceful when she slept. I sat on the floor and waited for her to wake up. I could wake her up myself, but I figured it would be best to just let her sleep. Moments later I heard our grandmother shouting saying that dinner was ready. I watched as Zaria stirred in the sleep. She slowly woke up with a few blinks. She turned her head and saw me sitting on the floor. I saw her eyes widen with happiness as she scrambled out of her bed and tackled me.

"Big Brother!" She shouted. She was clearly happy to see me. I smiled as I held her in my arms. "Did you beat that jerk Kakashi today?" She asked with a smile. That's when I frowned. How was I going to tell her I failed. Zaria could see my change in mood. She may be young, but she's incredibly smart.

"What's wrong big brother?" She asked as she looked at me with sad eyes. Even if I told her it was nothing. She would know I'm lying to her. I took a deep breath and told her I failed the chunin exams. It took a minute for her to process but once she did she smiled. I was a little confused to why she was smiling.

"It's okay Tobi. You're still a great ninja to me. You don't need a rank to prove how amazing you are" Zaria said with a smile before giving me a hug. I smiled realizing how lucky I was to have her as a sister. Like I said before, she always knew how to put a smile on my face. I was grateful for that. I honestly don't know what I would do without Zaria in my life.

"We should go downstairs now. Grandma said it's dinner time" I said as I got up. I still had Zaria in my arms. I decided just to carry her downstairs. She had her arms wrapped around my neck and her head resting on my shoulder. When we walked into the kitchen grandma had the table set and the food ready to be served. Zaria always enjoyed sitting on my lap during dinner so that's what I let her do. Sometimes I would take it upon myself to feed her too.

"You two are just so precious" my grandmother commented. I just chuckled as I fed Zaria some rice.

"One day when I grow up I want to be just like big brother!" Zaria exclaimed randomly. I'm glad to see at least someone admired me.


	16. Chapter 16

Even as a child I always knew there was something going on within the clan. Shisui was the eldest person in the clan that I spend time with so I asked him about it. He told me that I was too young to worry about such things and told me not to worry. By this time Obito had been dead a few weeks or I would have gone to him. Itachi didn't really like me so I couldn't ask him and his brother was younger than me so he wouldn't know anything either. I wanted to know what was going on but I wasn't getting any answers. I got frustrated and went to sit on the dock just outside of the Uchiha estate where most of the clan practices their fireball jutsu. I gathered some rocks and started throwing them into the ocean. That's when Shisui surprised me. He sat down next to me on the dock. He told me that he needed a favor from me. I was confused to why he was asking me. I wasn't even a ninja. How much help could I be? That's when he said it.

"Something bad is going to happen. I need you to leave the village for awhile" Shisui said. I could feel my eyes widen. Leave the village?Why? That's what I asked him. He gave me the same response from earlier.

"You're to young to worry" he replied not even looking at me. I was frustrated now. I told him that I wasn't going to leave unless he told me what was going on. He still wouldn't tell me. All he said was that he didn't want me to get involved in what was going on. Then he said something that peaked my interest. "Obito gave me the responsibility to care for and protect you so if you won't do it for me do it for Obito" Shisui said. I had no idea that Obito had entrusted Shisui with this kind of responsibility. Now I felt bad. Honestly for awhile I did think of Shisui like a brother. In honor of Obito I agreed on leaving the village for awhile.

Later that day I was in my room packing my things. I didn't know how long I was going to be gone so I didn't know how much to bring. I decided just to pack as much as I could carry. As I gathered things to bring with me I found the goggles that Kakashi had given me the day he told me Obito had died. I frowned as I held the goggles in my hand. These were his favorite pair. I put them in my bag along with the most recent picture I have of me and him together. I wanted to bring the last good memory I had of my brother. I remember the day before he died. I found him in the forest just outside of the village. He told me that he needed to train for the chunin exams. I knew he was lying and I called him out on it. Thinking back on it I laugh now. As I was packing my things there was a knock at my door. It was Shisui asking if he could come in. I told him he could. When he came in I saw he was dressed as if he was ready to go on one of his high ranked missions.

"Shisui where are you going?" I asked. He didn't tell me about being assigned on a mission like he usually does.

"I'm going to be your escort today. I want to make sure you get to the other village safe and the only way I can do that is if I take you myself" he responded. It was almost intimidating just looking at Shisui with all of his mission gear on. I nodded in response as I put on my backpack. I had never left the Leaf Village before so I was nervous. It's a good thing I was going to be with Shisui. He always managed to make me feel better when Obito wasn't around. I loved that about him. Shisui and me never really got along a while ago. Mostly cause I was a stubborn and he always teased about how he was better than Obito. While Obito was on missions he would leave Shisui in charge of me. It was time to go now. I looked back at the house as we walked away. I was a little bit sad to leave. Shisui seemed to notice. " Don't worry, everything will be okay" Shisui said to try and reassure me. I wanted to believe him, but part of me knew that it wasn't. Doubts filled my mind as we approached the main gate of the Leaf Village. I started second guessing myself. Was this really the only option? I could have stayed at a friends house. Now that I think about it, I didn't really have any friends here. The only people I ever spent time with were of my own clan. Maybe this was better for me. A new start in a new village. I could make friends outside of my clan. Now I was determined. We passed through the gates of the Leaf Village and that's when my nerves hit me again. I started clinging to Shisui. Being near him always put my mind at ease. He was stronger than Obito but he shared the same kinda heart. I didn't have the stamina of a ninja yet so when were half way there I got tired. I felt Shisui pick me up. He usually never does that so I was surprised when he did. He felt kinda warm it was comforting. I ended up falling asleep on his back as he carried me the rest of the way there. Even though I was asleep it felt like forever before we finally arrived at our destination. That's when Shisui woke me up.

"We're here Zaria" he said in a whisper that was loud enough to wake me. I had no idea where we were. Curios I asked Shisui. He told me that we were in a village called "The Hidden Grass Village". It was another ninja village. He took me to a house that was close to the village market yet not far from the village entrance. He knocked on the door and a man that looked about Shisui's age. He had sun kissed skin and a shaved head. He was a little bit more heavy set than Shisui is.

"Shisui I wasn't expecting to see you so soon" he said greeting Shisui and me. "What are you doing here anyways?" he then asked.

"I need a huge favor from you Tosen" Shisui stated as he put me down. I felt anxious so I hid behind Shisui. He chuckled in response and patted my head from behind with his right hand.

"Yeah sure man anything" Tosen responded.

"I need you to watch her for awhile" Shisui stated gently guiding me into Tosen view. "This is Zaria. She's my little cousin, practically my sister." He continued as he explained the situation to Tosen. They spoke in some type of code that I didn't understand. There was a lot of head nodding. So now this man knew more than I did. Knowing Shisui he probably told him not to tell me. Shisui helped me make myself at home. We unpacked all of my things and put them away. Just as Shisui was about to leave he stopped for a moment and turned to me.

"I want you to stay here until Itachi comes for you" Shisui told me. I was confused. Why would Itachi come for me? Why not him? That's exactly what I asked him.

"Because I won't be able to" was what Shisui said. I don't know why, but that answer made me very emotional. He knew that this was going to be the last time I saw him. That's why he went out of his way to bring me here himself. I ran to Shisui with tears in my eyes and begged him not to go. He gave me a hug and again tried to reassure me that everything was going to be okay. Now I didn't doubt him. I knew everything was not going to be okay. I was loosing everything. I was right. Shisui left me and it wasn't until a year later when I saw Itachi. I had just graduated from the ninja academy and became a genin He had told me that Everyone in the Uchiha clan has been killed with the exception of Sasuke and me. I asked about Shisui scared of the answer I was going to receive. I had every right to be scared. What he told me devastated me. He had told me that Shisui had committed suicide by jumping off a cliff. I collapse to my knees. I couldn't process what Itachi was telling me. He then told me that it was best if I stayed here in the Grass Village. Then he asked me to do something that I never thought I would hear coming from him.

"I want you to watch over Sasuke for me. You're the only person I trust to protect him" he said as he turned away. "I must go now. I don't want anyone thinking you were a co conspirator. Make sure you don't tell Sasuke the truth of the Uchiha clan. It's best if he stays in the dark for now." He then said before disappearing with the crows. I wasn't surprised though. That was both Itachi and Shisui's favorite genjutsu. Now I knew I was never going back to the Leaf Village. This is my new home now.

 _ **A/N:**_ _So this is what happens when you have writers block. You create alternate versions of previous chapters in different points of views. Clearly I need help. Hopefully I get back on track soon. Remember I still have a poll on my profile on what characters you want featured more in the story._


	17. Chapter 17

It was the day after returning from the Leaf Village. It's sad to know the only person from my childhood that's alive was Kakashi. Even though I have never met Itachi's little brother before my mission to the Hidden Flower Village I was relieved to know Sasuke was spared in the Uchiha Massacre. It was night time now. I wandering around the village by myself. Dealing with all of this stress gave me a headache. I could have just went back home, but I needed the air. I continued walking and ventured out into the forest. That's when I noticed something different. There was a presence of chakra that usually doesn't linger in the forest. I was now in defense mode. I took out one of my kunais that I had on me and was ready for an attack.

"I'm so proud of you." A voice said from behind me. I recognized that voice. I turned around with the kunai in my hand. I was shocked by who was standing in front of me. I dropped the kunai, which stabbed the ground.

"Shisui?!"I questioned clearly in shock. He nodded his head. "I've noticed you've become quite the ninja and even made a name for yourself. Obito would be so proud of you right now" he continued. He looked a lot different from the last time I saw him. He almost looked like a zombie. I was still in shock and now confused. What was he doing here? Was he here or was this an illusion or genjutsu? He seemed to notice my confusion and addressed it.

"I was brought back to life with the use of the reanimation jutsu" Shisui stated. "I came here to see you. I'm sorry I left you as a child. I just wanted you to be safe" he continued. He sounded as if he wanted to cry, but obviously he couldn't. So I cried for him. I ran into his arms and gave him a hug.

"Shisui I miss you so much!" I sobbed into his reanimated chest. Even though he was dead he still felt warm. I felt him hug me back. I was so relieved to see him again.

"I miss you too Zaria" Shisui whispered to me. If there was another person that I wanted to see just as much as Obito it was him. I could finally ask him what happened and now he could answer me. I pulled away from Shisui for a moment.

"Shisui there's something that's been bothering me for a while" I stated looking at him. He gave me a puzzling look. "Why did you kill yourself?" I asked. He sighed before he answered. I guess he knew I wanted to know.  
" I sacrificed myself this way Itachi could receive the mangekyou sharingan" Shisui answered. He knew there was no point in avoiding the question. I was shocked by his answer. He died for Itachi? I could feel my face soften. I always knew that Shisui saw Itachi as a brother of his own.

"You really did care about Itachi" I commented with a faint smile. It was nice to know that Shisui still had a kinda heart.

"Yeah, we were like brothers. He's not the only person I care about" Shisui stated. I looked up at him and saw he had a smirk on my face. "I know you didn't really like me, but I always thought of you as a sister" he continued. I smiled and gave Shisui another hug. It was kind of sad to think that Shisui thought I didn't like him. He was wrong. He was like a brother to me just as much as Obito was.

"You're wrong Shisui. I love you like my own brother. You have no idea how much pain I was in when Itachi told me that you committed suicide" I sobbed. "It hurt to know that you had already decided you were going to do that when you left me here" I continued. That's when he surprised me. He held me tightly in his arms.

"I'm sorry I've caused you this much pain. I never knew I meant so much to you. I wish I could have done things differently, but it had to be done" Shisui stated. "If Itachi didn't do what he did, our clan would have destroyed the entire Leaf Village" he continued. I understood the whole situation now. When Itachi had explained it to me I was only twelve and had just become a genin. Back then I didn't have a good grasp on my emotional state and constantly lost it when something tragic happened. I remember overreacting and having a panic attack the second Itachi left that night. I couldn't process the story back then. Now that I'm older I could finally comprehend what had happen.

"I understand now. You were right not to tell me when I was younger. I didn't understand everything until now" I told him. I was still hugging him. He was still hugging me. I missed him so much I didn't want to let go. I could tell neither did he, but he did anyways.

"I have to go now" Shisui stated. I still didn't let go. I wasn't going to.

"Shisui please stay!" I pleaded. For the first time in a while I cried. I was scared and I didn't want to lose him again. Typical as also Shisui was always very reassuring. He said the same words he always says.

"Don't worry Zaria. Everything's going to be okay" he said. This time I didn't doubt him like I used to. I let go of Shisui. Shisui began to fade away as I waved good bye to him. I walked back into the village. Reality kinda hit me then. Did I really just talk to Shisui? Was he really there? Was I under someone's genjutsu? I was really confused now. I made my way back home. I didn't know what else was going to happen tonight. Next thing I know it Obito could randomly pop up just like Shisui did in the forest. I shook that idea out of my mind. I was still in disbelief with Shisui showing up. There was one thing I was concerned with. Who was the person that reanimated Shisui? I needed to know. I was going to find out. There was something going on and I was going to find out.


	18. Chapter 18

Zaria was determined to find out what was going on. She had gotten permission to do a private investigation, but was ordered to report back immediately if it was serious. She accepted the terms and prepared for her mission. She had asked her sensei to keep the details of her mission to a minimum to Satoru and Raiden. She didn't want them worrying about her so much. She made her way to an abandoned city that was nearby. She knew of a woman that lived there that provided weapons and intel to the Uchiha clan. If there was anyone who knew anything about the Uchiha clan, it was her. She pack her stuff and put on her mission gear. She had no idea when she was going to be back, but she didn't day goodbye to anyone except for her sensei. Zaria made her way to the abandoned city. When she got there she saw cats running every where. Zaria entered one building and walked down the hall and down a secret passage. At the end of the passage was the entrance to a store. Sitting on the floor was an old lady that had the resemblance of a cat.

"My my Zaria my child is that you?" She asked as she inhaled smoke from her pipe. Zaria nodded her head and sat down in front of the woman. She took off her bag and got comfortable.

"It's been awhile Granny Cat" Zaria stated with a small smile. She felt a bit uneasy being here. It was the first time she had come here since she was about four years old. She used to come here all the time with Obito and sometimes Shisui when he got the blade of his sword repaired.

"What brings you here my dear?" She asked looking at her quizzically. Zaria got nervous and felt her palms get sweaty. She shifted a little where she was sitting. The two ninja cats that always hangout with Granny Cat appeared and sat near her making her more uneasy.

"I need some supplies and some information" Zaria answered. " I need to know what has been going on with my clan" Zaria demanded getting straight to the point. Granny Cat looked at her taking yet another puff from her pipe.

"What do you mean?" Granny Cat asked. She seemed as if she had no idea what Zaria was talking about. Zaria was confused. Usually Granny Cat knew everything that was going on with the Uchiha clan. Now it seems as if she knows nothing.

"Something strange happened last night and I'm convinced something bad is going to happen" Zaria stated almost panicked. Granny Cat thought for a second before she answered. However she asked something else instead.

"What happened?" She asked looking at Zaria who seemed to be getting frustrated.

"Well last night I was walking around in the forest outside of the Hidden Grass Village and all of a sudden I was greeted by a reanimated Shisui" Zaria explained. "I haven't seen Shisui since he first brought me to the Grass Village" she continued to explain. Granny Cat looked surprised. Zaria was surprised too at seeing how Granny Cat seemed to not know of this.

" I apologize my dear. I haven't gotten any information about the Uchiha clan since they were all killed by Itachi. If there's anything going on he might know" Granny Cat replied. Zaria nodded in reply. She knew one day she would have to face Itachi again. "You said earlier you needed supplies. What do you need?" Granny Cat asked.

"Yeah, I need some weapons. I have a long mission ahead of me" Zaria replied. Granny Cat nodded and motioned of Tamaki to bring over some weapons. Zaria looked at the weapons thoroughly before selecting a few to purchase. She came across what seemed to be a duplicate of Shisui's small sword. She had to have it. She had a memory of Obito. Now she had a memory of Shisui. Once she was done she searched through her bag for her wallet and took out some money.

"Here Granny Cat. This should be enough to cover everything. Thanks for all your help" Zaria said placing the money down in front of Granny Cat. Zaria stood up and put on her backpack and said good bye to Granny Cat. She exited the store and decided that she didn't need to be in the abandoned city any longer. Being separated from the Uchiha clan has changed her. She wasn't the same girl that she was back when she resided in the Leaf Village. For the longest time after being separated from her family Zaria would often be discrete about being a member of the Uchiha clan. She would never introduce herself as "Zaria Uchiha". It wasn't that she was ashamed of being a member of the Uchiha clan. She just didn't want the sympathy of being a survivor of the "Uchiha Clan Massacre" as most people know it as. When she was taken from the Leaf Village she stopped wearing clothes that carried the Uchiha crest on her back. The only time she would wear such shirts is when she made a trip to the Hidden Leaf, but even those were rare. Although just by her fighting style most ninja already know who she is. She made quite the name for herself among the ninja world. She was feared by most ninja just by her presence. The rumor is that even if her clan was still alive she would be considered one of the elite members right between Shisui and Itachi,even though she does not have the mangekyou sharingan. While she was still in the academy she taught herself to use medical ninjutsu. She is considered to be the only member of the Uchiha clan to be a medical ninja. Her Skills that she gained over the years were going to come in handy during this journey. Now she had to seek Itachi. It's been over a year and a half since she last saw him. She was hoping that she could talk to him peacefully like the first time they met cause she really didn't want to fight him. Either way she was going to get her answers. The only problem was she had no idea where Itachi was. That was going to be the difficult part of her mission. For now she decided it was best to go home until she had an idea of where Itachi was instead of blindly searching for him.


	19. Chapter 19

For the time being Zaria returned to the Grass Village. She had no idea where she could find Itachi and she didn't want to go on a blind search. She walked through out the village still bearing her mission gear. She walked around the corner when she overheard two jonin talking. They were talking about a sighting of two members of the Akatsuki. Zaria hid by the corner and listened to the conversation. Itachi happened to be a member of the Akatsuki so maybe he was one of the members that was spotted.

"Yeah apparently one of them was Itachi Uchiha of the Leaf" one ninja said. That confirmed Zaria's thoughts. "Yeah him and another member was spotted by the bridge heading towards the Leaf" the other jonin said. Zaria nodded her head once and took off. She had informed Daisuke that she was leaving again and that she might have a lead on where Itachi is. She left the village again and made her way to the bridge where it was noted that Itachi and another member of the Akatsuki was spotted. Just as she reached the bridge she saw Itachi. She hid behind a nearby tree first before she approached him. She teleported in front of them.

"Itachi I need to talk to you" Zaria demanded.

"Itachi, who is this?" Itachi's partner asked looking at him.

"She's my cousin. Zaria Uchiha" Itachi answered. His partner smirked and looked at Zaria.

"Zaria Uchiha eh. I've heard of her. She's known as the 'Dragon of the Uchiha Clan'" He stated.

"Itachi I didn't come here to fight you. I just want answers" Zaria stated.

"I already told you everything you need to know about the the coup" Itachi responded.

"There's something else going on. Members of the Uchiha clan are being reanimated. The other night Shisui came to me. At first I thought I was in a genjutsu but when I tried to release it Shisui said that it wasn't a genjutsu, that he was brought back to life with the reanimation jutsu." Zaria explained. "If there's anyone who knows about the Uchiha clan and what was going on it would be you" she continued. Itachi just looked at her. He stood there with silence. Both his partner and Zaria looked at him. She needed answers. Part of her knew it was going to be a struggle to get answers out of him, but she didn't want to fight him. " I already went to Granny Cat and she recommended that I come see you" She continued knowing Itachi was going to tell her to see Granny Cat. "You and Shisui were practically brothers you if it involved him you would have to know something wouldn't you?" Zaria questioned. She had to know.

"I'm sorry Zaria. I know nothing about Shisui being revived with the reanimation jutsu. This is the first I'm hearing of our clan being brought back to life. If I had to guess it has something to do with Orochimaru" Itachi responded. Zaria was a little shocked to see Itachi not know anything. She was more shocked that Itachi mentioned Orochimaru. She had heard nasty rumors involving him.

"Orochimaru?" Zaria questioned.

"He's been after the sharingan for a long time now. If there's anyone who wants to use members of the Uchiha clan it would be him." Itachi replied. "However, I wouldn't recommend going after him. If he knows the reanimation jutsu then he's far to powerful for you to handle" Itachi continued. Zaria nodded in response. He was right, she's no match for Orochimaru. Despite her strength he knows more powerful jutsu than her own. He would instantly kill her. Zaria decided that she got all the information she needed from Itachi and decided to leave.

"Thank you Itachi" Zaria said as she walked away. She paused for a minute and turned her head slightly. "By the way, I met Sasuke awhile ago and did as you told. His strength has increased as expected" Zaria stated before disappearing. Itachi smirked for a second and continued in the direction he and his partner were going. Just as Zaria was making her way back she saw a man in an orange mask with one eye hole peaking at her from a tree above her. Zaria was puzzled for a second but she decided to ignore it. He wasn't really bothering her so she wasn't going to address it. She went back to the village and went looking for Daisuke. She had promised him that if she had new information that was of importance she would report to him immediately. She found Daisuke at a nearby noodle shop with the sensei of team fifteen.

"Excuse me, sorry to bother you Daisuke-sensei, but it's really important I speak to you. Zaria stated whispering in her sensei's ear. Daisuke nodded and excused himself. Both of them walked out of the noodle shop and made there way to Daisuke's apartment where they could talk in private.  
"So what's up?" Daisuke asked as he leaned against the window sill. Zaria usually never bothered him this much when they don't have any work to do.

"So I managed to track down Itachi and he was able to give me some information that might be useful" Zaria began.

"What's that?" Daisuke questioned wanting to know more. He seemed a little bit more concerned now. It must be serious if he bothered him so suddenly.

"Well we might have more of a problem then we thought. Itachi said that if members of the Uchiha clan are being brought back to life with the reanimation jutsu that it's the doing of Orochimaru" Zaria stated. Just as Daisuke suspected. He knew there was a possibility of Orochimaru being involved in a matter like this.

"I should have known Orochimaru had something to do with this. It's stated that he's after the power of the sharingan." Daisuke stated. Zaria was surprised to hear that Daisuke knew about that.

"You already knew about that?" Zaria questioned looking at her sensei confused. Daisuke nodded his head.

"A while back I asked the Hokage if she could unseal the files related to the Uchiha clan and anything they were involved in" Daisuke stated.

"Do you mind if I take a look at those files?" Zaria asked. She wanted to know everything that was going on.

"Sorry they were resealed a while ago. You need permission from the Hokage to view them" Daisuke replied. Zaria was frustrated now. She needed more answers.

"Is there any possible way you could get permission from the Hokage?" Zaria asked with desperation in her voice.

"I can try but I doubt I'll have any success. She'll want to know everything and she might decide that your mission is too dangerous to continue on your own and get members of the Anbu black ops involved. Zaria didn't want to get anyone else involved if she didn't have to. However, if it involves the sharingan then there was someone else she needed to inform. It was Kakashi who had Obito's left sharingan eye. She refused to get Sasuke involved because if it was too dangerous for her than it was even more dangerous for him since he's just a genin. Even though it has only been two weeks Zaria decided that she needed to go back to the Leaf Village and speak to Kakashi herself.


	20. Chapter 20

Zaria rushed to the Leaf Village. She needed to speak to Kakashi. She had to warn him. To make sure he keeps an eye on Sasuke. On her way there she saw a man with an orange mask again. Zaria continued to ignore him. She continued making her way to the Leaf Village. Finally she stood in front of the entrance. Zaria took a deep breath before proceeding. She entered the village and began her search for Kakashi. Zaria made her way around the village and came across one of his students, Sakura.

"SAUKRA!" Zaria shouted trying to get her attention. Sakura looked around wondering who was calling her name. Zaria approached her from the front.

"Oh Zaria, I thought you left awhile ago" Sakura stated. She was confused to see Zaria standing in front of her.

"I did, but I came back" Zaria responded. "Do you know where your sensei is?" She then asked. Sakura just shrugged her shoulders.

"No, I haven't seen him all day" Sakura replied. Zaria sighed and ran off.

"Thanks anyways!" Zaria shouted leaving Sakura. She needed to to find Kakashi. She went to the training grounds thinking he would be there with Sasuke. When she got there neither one of them were in sight. Zaria was getting desperate now. She didn't have any time to waste. From the past Zaria knew Kakashi liked to train in the mountains. That's where she headed to next. It took her a while to get up the mountain. Once she did her hunch was right. She had found Kakashi and Sasuke. Kakashi must have been training Sasuke really hard since he looked like he was almost out of breath.

"KAKASHI!" Zaria called out to him. Both Kakashi and Sasuke turned their attention to Zaria.

"What are you doing here?" Sasuke asked.

"Sasuke can you leave for a moment. I need to talk to Kakashi alone." Zaria stated. Sasuke was very skeptical. He still didn't completely trust Zaria yet. Kakashi seemed to pick up on it.

"It's okay Sasuke. We're done for today anyways" Kakashi stated. Kakashi was his sensei so he didn't really have a say in the matter. He just stuffed his hands in his pockets and began to leave.

"Whatever, I'm going home then" Sasuke stated as he walked away. They both watched Sasuke leave. Once he was gone Zaria thought it would be a good time to give Kakashi the details.

"There's a reason why I needed to talk to you alone" Zaria stated. Kakashi looked at her with curiosity. He knew Zaria didn't really like him after the way he treated her as a kid. So why come to him?

"And what's that?" Kakashi asked. Just like Sasuke even he was a little suspicious.

"I'm on a private solo mission" Zaria began. "I came to warn you about something" She continued. Kakashi was concerned now. What was she warning him about? There was a sense of urgency in her voice. "Before I continue, you have to promise me that you won't tell the Hokage" Zaria begged. Now Kakashi was more concerned. What was she about to tell him that she doesn't want the Hokage to know about?

"Zaria you know if it's important or life threatening then I have to report it to the Hokage" Kakashi stated. That's not what Zaria wanted to hear.

"Kakashi Please! I never ask you for anything. If the Hokage gets involved she'll take away my mission and give it to the Anbu Black Ops" Zaria pleaded. Kakashi has never seen Zaria beg like this before. Not even as a child. Although at that time she absolutely hated him. So why would she ask him for anything then? Kakashi sighed knowing he wasn't going to win this argument.

"Okay fine, but you know the Hokage will eventually find out" Kakashi responded in defeat.

"Yeah I know. I'm hoping by then I'll have all the information I need." Zaria replied.

"So what is it?" Kakashi questioned. He wanted to know what was so important.

" A few days ago at night time I was in the forest just going for a walk. That's when I encountered a reanimated Shisui Uchiha" Zaria began. Kakashi's eyes widened with shock. Who managed to reanimate Shisui Uchiha? "I thought it was a little weird. So I went to Granny Cat. She usually has all the intel involving any members of the Uchiha clan, but she didn't know anything. She suggested I go ask Itachi and that's exactly what I did. I went searching for him and when I found him he had know idea Shisui had been reanimated. Although he mentioned that if it involves the reanimation jutsu it might have something to do with Orochimaru" Zaria explained.

"Why would Orochimaru revive members of the Uchiha clan?" Kakashi questioned.

"Itachi claims that Orochimaru has been after the power of the sharingan for quite some time now" Zaria replied.  
"The sharingan?" Kakashi said confused. Zaria nodded her head in response.

"I'm not asking you to help me, however I do need a favor from you" Zaria voiced. Kakashi was really concerned. "I know Sasuke has Orochimaru's curse mark on his neck and before you ask how I saw it myself. The favor I'm asking is that I want you to keep an eye on Sasuke. If Orochimaru is really involved in all of this I wan to make sure Sasuke stays safe" Zaria stated.

"So do you plan on facing Orochimaru by yourself?" Kakashi asked. He had suspected that was her intentions.

"NO! OF COURSE NOT!" Zaria shouted in response. "I'm not stupid. I know when I'm no match for someone especially someone like Orochimaru" Zaria then defended.

"Then what are you going to do?" Kakashi questioned. If she wasn't going to go after him then why keep this information from the Hokage?

"I don't know yet. Honestly you were always the smart one on Obito's team. I was actually hoping that you would have the answer" Zaria responded. She had never complimented him before. He was a little surprised that she did.

"I still think you should tell the Hokage. Orochimaru is a serious threat and needs to be dealt with" Kakashi responded. Zaria looked at the ground. She knew he was right. However, she also knew that she had to investigate some more before handing it off to the Hokage.

"Like I said earlier, I don't know if Orochimaru is even directly involved in this yet. I need to continue my investigation before going to the Hokage" Zaria stated.

"Well when you get the information you need, come find me again. We'll confront the Hokage together when the time comes" Kakashi suggested as he placed a hand on Zaria's shoulder. With that Kakashi had disappeared. Zaria was very conflicted. She left the Leaf Village and made her way back home. Kakashi wasn't really much help. On her way home she saw the orange-masked man yet again. Zaria tried to ignore it, but it was becoming more persistent. When she gave the man a glance he disappeared in a panic. This made Zaria confused. For now she shrugged it off as nothing. Although one day she will confront him.


	21. Chapter 21

I can't believe how much she has grown since I've been gone. I've been watching my sister for awhile now. Even though Zaria is my sister I don't have the courage to confront her. She's been convinced that I'm dead. It would be hard to prove to her that I'm not. I noticed that she had met Shisui the another night after being reanimated. It's funny cause when he was alive Zaria didn't really like him. He would always tease her about how he would make a better brother than me. Zaria always disagreed claiming that I was the "greatest big brother". It was always funny to watch hr defend me. Although I see now she's getting along with Kakashi. When I was around Zaria couldn't stand him. That was mostly cause me and him fought constantly. I could see part of her still didn't like him. Zaria always manages to amaze me. When we were younger she used to claim that she wanted to become a ninja just like her big brother. Now here she is today considered one of the strongest female ninjas among the Hidden Grass. Honestly I think she's stronger than me now. As her older bother I'm proud of her. Sometimes I wish I could be there for her. Instead I'm here watching her from the shadows. One day I'll stop being a coward and tell her the truth. That her brother never died in the third shinobi war. That he was rescued by their ancestor and given another chance. It's hard to know that for the longest time I was the cause of her pain and suffering. I was the reason for her tears. I broke my heart to see her cry. When she cried I would cry too knowing I couldn't comfort my own sister in her time of need. There was a few times in the forest where she spotted me and I would panic and leave. This time I didn't follow her. I didn't want her to find out just yet.

"TOBI WHAT ARE YOU DOING?" Deidara shouted from above. I panicked for a minute. I didn't want him to what I was doing.

"Uhhh Tobi's a good boy?" I said hoping he would buy it. Deidara gave me that annoyed look that he always gives me.

"Whatever" Deidara responded and went ahead of me. I sighed with relief and followed him. Deidara and I were supposed to go the the Sand Village and retrieve the two tails from Gaara. I'm hoping I don't run into my sister because the sound village was on the way. I over heard her conversation with Kakashi the other day. She believes that Orochimaru was somewhat involved in Shisui's reanimation. So if she wants to investigate she would end up going to the sound village where his hideout was located. I didn't want to have to fight my sister. That's the last thing I want to do is cause her any harm. I'm her brother I want to protect her. The last time I saw Zaria she was back in the Grass Village. I'm hoping for now she'll stay there. I love my little sister. I'll admit that if she confronts the other members of the Akatsuki I'll take her side and protect her. Even if it means losing the trust of the Akatsuki I don't care. Protecting Zaria is my number one priority. Even though Shisui eventually took his own life I was glad he was able to keep Zaria safe while he could. I've observed her team mates for awhile. Her one team mate Satoru seems to be very protective of Zaria. Something tells me that there's something more going on between those two and as much as I dislike my sister being around I guy outside of the family. There's nothing I can do now. I just hope that he protects her with his life as I would. Her other team mate seems to also want to protect Zaria too, but not as much as Satoru. I think it's just because they're on the same team and that's okay. At least they work together like a team should. I wish me, Kakashi, and Rin were like that back then. I looked down for a minute and that's when I saw her. Zaria happened to be heading in the same direction as me and Deidara. Then she took a turn that separated our paths. I wanted to know what she was doing.

"Deidara I think we should split up. We'll have a better chance of infiltrating the Sand Village that way" I suggested. Deidara just looked at me, but he couldn't disagree. He knew I was right. He nodded his head and continued on. I went and followed Zaria. I wanted to see where she was going. I thought that she was going to head to the Sound Village, but this isn't they way to the Sound Village. So where could she be going? I concealed my chakra so Zaria wouldn't notice that I'm following her. I recognized this path. This was the alternate route to the Hidden Leaf. Itachi and Kisame were on their way to the Hidden Leaf to retrieve the nine tails. Something tells me that she's going after Itachi again. She remember her hating Itachi so I think it's weird that she wanted to see him. I noticed that she's been on her own for awhile. I haven't see her with her team mates recently. I guess this was some type of solo mission. I saw her stop and I stopped and hid. She turned her head and looked up in my direction. I was panicking on the inside. Did she sense my presence? If she did then how?

"I know someone's there so you better come out now!" Zaria demanded. Yeah she knew I was there. What am I going to do now? Part of me wanted to come out of hiding yet the other part wanted to run. I went with my gut and came out and stood in front of Zaria. I guess now was going to be the time to confront my sister.

"You're the guy that's been following me for days now. What do you want?" Zaria requisitioned. She carefully studied me. "You're a member of the Akatsuki just like my cousin Itachi" she then stated. She looked angry. I've never seen her so mad before. I didn't know what to say? I never planned for this to happen so soon. "Who are you?" Zaria asked. Now I was losing it. For the longest time I went by Tobi. However, she was the one who first called me that. If I told her my name was Tobi. It would give away my identity. Now wasn't the time for that. I came up with a plan on the spot.

"You don't need to know my name" I stated in my deep voice I use as Madara. She looked annoyed with me. It sucks that I have to lie to her. For now, it's for the best. When the time comes I'll tell her the truth.

"If you won't tell me your name. At least tell me why you've been following me?" Zaria demanded. What was I going to do?

"There's something about you that fascinates me" I responded. It wasn't exactly a lie, but it wasn't the truth either.

"How do I fascinate you?" Zaria questioned. I shrugged my shoulders not knowing how to answer that. I needed to make an escape and get back to Deidara.

"Maybe next time we meet, I'll have an answer for you" I said as I used a smoke bomb to make my escape. I looked back and saw that she was just stood there. She shook her head and went back in the direction she was going. I'm sorry Zaria maybe one day I'll tell you the truth.


	22. Chapter 22

After confronting with the man that has been following her Zaria continued to find Itachi. That's when someone else confronted her. It was her own team. She specifically told Daisuke not to tell Satoru and Raiden what she was doing so they wouldn't follow her. She was annoyed to see them. Both of them looked at her confused.

"What are you two doing here?" Zaria asked annoyed. They were her team mates. Were they supposed to stay in the village and do nothing?

"Where are you going?" Raiden asked. He seemed frustrated with Zaria. Who could blame him. Zaria wasn't exactly open with them.

"That's none of your business!" Zaria responded. She was getting defensive now. Satoru and Raiden stared at her. They knew something was going on and they wanted to know what.

"We are your team mates Zaria. Is there a reason you can't tell us anything? Do you not trust us?" Satoru questioned. That wasn't true. Zaria trusted them completely. She just didn't want to get them involved in such a personal matter. Zaria hesitated for a minute. She didn't know whether to lie or to just tell them the truth. If she told them the truth then they would want to get involved and Zaria would make no progress. However, if she lied then they would just go to Daisuke and they would be even more mad at her. Zaria sighed with defeat. She had no choice but to tell them the truth. They were going to find out eventually.

"Okay fine, I'll tell you the truth" Zaria said with defeat clearly in her voice.

"So what's going on?" Raiden asked. Zaria looked up and made eye contact with both her team mates.

"I'm going to find out the location of Orochimaru's hideout" Zaria stated. Both of her team mates looked at her with shock. They thought she was insane. Especially doing this by herself. It was a suicide mission.

"Zaria are you crazy!?" Raiden exclaimed.

"Yeah I agree with Raiden. Orochimaru is dangerous to face alone. Are you trying to get yourself killed?" Satoru questioned. She knew that was the response she was going to get from them.

"Relax! I'm not going to fight him. I just want to know the location." Zaria stated trying to calm her team mates. That didn't help at all.

"What are you going to do when you get caught?" Raiden asked. Satoru stayed quiet this time. He wanted to listen to Zaria's reasoning.

"I get it and I don't know, but I need to find out what's going on" Zaria stated trying to defend herself.

"Just trust me for once. I know what I'm doing" she continued.

"What exactly do you need to find out? When we asked Daisuke-sensei what was up with you he wouldn't answer us. All he said was that you were on a solo mission." Raiden explained. "I just think it's weird, cause if you were on a solo mission you would have told us yourself instead of us finding out from Daisuke-sensei" he continued.

"Fine. If I tell you do you promise to let me continue my mission solo?" Zaria questioned. She already knew the answer, but she wanted to see if they would surprise her.

"That depends on your answer" Satoru responded. That's his way of saying that she wasn't continuing solo.

"Someone is reviving members of my clan and I want to know who. I have to put a stop to this" Zaria explained. Both Raiden and Satoru were really confused. Why didn't she want her clan to be revived. She's always talking about how much she misses her family.

"What's wrong with reviving your clan? You always saying that you miss your brother" Satoru said curiously.

"Satoru you don't understand! I'm from the Uchiha clan. My clan was so close to starting a war before Itachi intervened!" Zaria responded. "Yes I miss Obito, but the Uchiha clan can't be brought back to life!" Zaria stated.

"Why not?" Raiden asked confused. He knew of Zaria's origin but, didn't understand what was going on.

"Like I said, my clan almost started a war. If more members of the Uchiha clan other than Shisui, we could be in trouble. Granted Shisui tried to stop the coup he's still out numbered by the other members" Zaria explained. Now they understood what was going on. Both Satoru and Raiden looked at each other. They contemplated whether or not it was okay for Zaria to continue on her own. They nodded at each other. Zaria looked at the both of them confused. Satoru looked at Zaria. He had that look on his face that made her worry. Raiden had a smirk on his face. That also made Zaria worry. Something told her that they were going to continue to tag along.

"Tell you what. If we feel like you're in any type of danger we're going to step in. For now we'll let you continue on your own" Raiden voiced. Satoru nodded his head in response with Raiden. Zaria was actually surprised. She was a little bit relieved. She knew eventually they would get involved, but she's glad with them keeping their distance for now.

"Good luck Zaria" Satoru uttered. Raiden and Satoru left for now and Zaria continued on her way. Zaria was originally going after Itachi, but she decided he wouldn't help her with Orochimaru so she just went straight to the Sound Village. She knew that the Hidden Sound was a dangerous village to be in by herself, but lucky for her she came prepared. Even though she didn't have the mangekyou sharingan she still had a trump card. After fighting so many battles and using her sharingan she managed to copy a decent amount of jutsu that will help her infiltrate a shinobi village undetected. She made a hand sign and used the camouflage jutsu that conceals her presence as well as chakra making her appearance completely invisible. She quietly made her way into the Sound Village hoping no one was smart enough to figure her out. She didn't want to fight anyone right now nor did she want to fight anyone at all. Hopefully there is someone in this village that will unintentionally lead her to his hideout.


	23. Chapter 23

I finally confronted her. Not the way I imagined it would go, but it happened. I panicked cause it was too soon. There's still things I want to do first before I see her again. I wonder what her reaction will be when I tell her that I'm still alive. I doubt she'll just jump in my arms and tell me how much she missed her big brother like she used to when I came back from missions. She probably won't believe that it's really me. I miss being around her. Sometimes I wish I didn't listen to Madara. I could have returned to the Leaf Village. Things probably could have been different. Rin might have still been alive. Zaria could have stayed in the Leaf Village and become a leaf ninja instead so we could have gone on missions together. I could have cheered her on in the final round of the chunin exams as the supportive older brother I wish I could be. What am I saying? It's not Madara's fault, It's mine. I let myself get crushed by those rocks. Madara was the one who saved me. He gave me a second chance.

I hope Zaria didn't end up going to the Sound Village like she had talked about. I know how dangerous that village can be. I don't care that she's a ninja now. She's still my little sister. I don't know what I would do if anything happened to her. It's bad enough I already lost Rin. Worst part is Kakashi let her die. For now I focused on the objective. We must infiltrate the sand village and get the jinchuriki, the one tails. Sasori is supposed to come with us and provide back up. I don't really do much fighting anymore. The most I'll do is taijutsu in order to conceal my identity. Deidara took to the sky to get an aerial view of the village. I stayed in the trees and stayed out of sight. My attention went between the village and Deidara up in the sky. I left the trees and entered the desert. I was going to sneak in while Deidara distracted them. After this there will only be one jinchuriki left. The nine-tails fox of the Leaf. Itachi and Kisame were supposed to take care of that. It's a good thing too because I don't want to run into Kakashi. Thinking about Itachi and Kakashi bring up bad memories. I helped Itachi slaughter our own clan and Kakashi practically killed Rin. The only happy memory I have that still exists is my sister and she doesn't even know I'm still alive. Every time I think about her I always get random flashbacks.

" _Just remember as your sister I'll always be proud of you"_

" _I love you big brother"_

 _I'll be cheering you on every step of the way. When you do become Hokage , I'm gonna rub it in all of my friends faces that my big brother is the hokage"_

Just thinking about her smile brings me to tears. How could I do this to her? What kind of brother am I to abandon my little sister like that? If she still loves me after all I've put her through I'll truly be the luckiest big brother to have a little sister like Zaria. Her smile was what used to get me through the day. She just brought me so much joy. Every time I had was upset she was there for me to cheer me up. Every time I pass through a village and I see siblings giving each other piggy-back rides it makes me remember how much Zaria loved them. That was my go to in order to make her happy.

" _Obito?" Zaria questioned her brother's actions._

" _Get on, I'll give you a piggy-back ride home" Obito responded and Zaria smiled._

I remember the last day I saw my sister. It was right before my mission to Kanami Bridge. She had woken up bright and early and chased me down at the gate of the village. She was never a morning person so I was a little surprised to see her so early in the morning. It was all because I didn't say goodbye to her at the house. I even remember Kushina's comment. It made me smile.

" _Those two are the cutest siblings I've ever seen"_ Also what Minato-sensei said following Kushina's comment. _"Obito is very protective over Zaria and Zaria absolutely adores Obito."_ It was true. I was very protective of Zaria and I still am. Even though now I'm just protecting her from the shadows. The day I left her was one of the saddest days of my life. Even more than watching Rin die right in front of me. Nothing compares to losing your own sibling. Especially my little sister Zaria.

" _I just wanted to see you before you left on your mission" Zaria said. Obito chuckled as he crouched down to Zaria's level._

" _You woke up early just so see me off?" Obito asked with a smile. Zaria shyly nodded and Obito laughed._

" _You really are the best Zary"Obito stated as he pat Zaria on her head. Zary was his nickname for her and every time he said it, it made her smile. He adored his sister's smile._

" _No Obito you're the best!" Zaria exclaimed happily._

" _I'll be back soon, Don't worry" Obito said to Zaria as he wiped away a tear with his thumb._

" _I'll miss you big brother" Zaria said as she let out a sob._

That was the first time I ever lied to her. I still can't believe I lied to her. Even before when I confronted her the other day I lied to her. All I wanted to tell her was that everything was going to be okay and her big brother was still alive. All I want is to tell her the truth. To give her a piggy-back ride like when we were younger. More importantly...to tell my little sister that her big brother still loves her very much and would do anything to gain back her love and admiration. I hope that I haven't become a faded memory to her. I hope that in her heart there's still a place for me.


	24. Chapter 24

Zaria has successfully infiltrated the Sound Village. So far she hasn't encountered any enemies as of right now. She had to be careful though. She was in enemy territory and was completely outnumbered. Zaria almost started second guessing herself. Now she felt as if she needed her team. Satoru would have came in handy with his Kumogan in tracking Orochimaru. Raiden would be useful as a quick distraction. She spotted someone who seemed familiar to her. Kabuto, they fought a long time ago. She knew that he was working with Orochimaru. She followed Kabuto thinking he would lead her to Orochimaru's hideout and it worked. Zaria stood in a tree stilling using her camouflage jutsu so her presence remained undetected. She watched Kabuto enter the hideout. Now she knew the location of his hideout. That's all she wanted. As of right now she had no intentions of entering his hideout. She needed more help for that. For now she retreated back to the Grass Village. She went to look for her team mates. On her way to the training grounds where she knows she'll find Satoru and Raiden she bumped into Takada. She thought about it for a second while looking at him. She knew of what Takada was capable of.

"Hey Takada" Zaria greeted with a small smile. Takada looked at her confused. He knew that Zaria didn't really like him. So why is she actually taking her time to talk to him.

"Um hey Zaria...what's up?" Takada responded. Zaria decided that her solo mission just became a co-op mission. She was perfectly okay with that. It's true she didn't really like Takada, but he was useful when it came to combat and intel missions.

"Are you by any chance busy at all?" Zaria asked. She was going to go through with it. She knew when Raiden found out he wasn't going to be happy. He hates Takada the most always complaining that he's a show off. Takada looked at her confused. What did she want with him?

"Umm no why?" Takada replied. He was really curios. Zaria just gave him a smirk that worried him.

"I'm currently on a mission...wanna help a girl out?" Zaria suggested. Takada looked at her quizzically. Why would she need his help. She's got her own team mates.

"Why do you need my help? What about your team mates?" Takada asked. Zaria giggled in response. She could tell he was nervous.

"They're busy with something else. So please Takada I could really use your help" Zaria said innocently. Takada blushed a little. Part of him had a small crush on Zaria. He finally caved and agreed to help her.

"Okay fine if Satoru and Raiden are too busy to help you then I'll do it" Takada uttered. Zaria smiled and gave Takada a loose hug.

"Thanks Takada you're the best!" Zaria replied with happiness. "Meet me at my house tomorrow so we can talk about our plan" Zaria said right before she left.

"Yeah okay see you then" Takada voiced to Zaria as he watched her run away. One half of him was nervous the other half was excited.

"I don't understand that girl. One day she hates me the next day she's begging me to help her on a mission" Takada uttered to himself. 'At least she's actually seeing me as someone now' Takada thought. Zaria finally arrived at the training ground and watched her team mates spar. She laughed at the way they trained. They don't even actually train they just have little sparring matches just to see whose better. She walked up to the two hoping they would stop for a minute and notice she was there. Raiden quickly noticed and it distracted him. Satoru was able to land a hit on Raiden in the shoulder.

"Ow Satoru that's not fair Zaria distracted me!" Raiden called out as he stood up rubbing his shoulder.

"What are you-" Satoru cut himself off when he saw Raiden gesturing to Zaria. She just stood there and smiled.

"Zaria you're okay?" Satoru questioned. Zaria looked at him as if he was stupid.

"Of course I'm okay. Wow Satoru way to doubt me" Zaria replied.

"Yeah Satoru" Raiden chimed in sticking his tongue out at Satoru.

"Shut up Raiden" Satoru responded wanting to smack Raiden. Zaria giggled at Satoru.

"Relax it's just harmless teasing" Zaria interjected. Satoru's face turned a light pink with embarrassment. He always knew that Zaria liked to tease him. He usually let it go cause it made her smile when she did. He enjoyed seeing her smile.

"What are you doing Zaria? I thought you were on a solo mission?" Raiden questioned.

"Yeah. I thought you were going to find the location to Orochimaru's hideout" Satoru added.

"I did. Now my mission went from solo to co-op" Zaria responded

"Co-op? You mean you're actually letting us help you?" Satoru questioned. Zaria giggled and shook her head. Both of them were confused now.

"Takada is coming with me" Zaria announced. Now they were in shock.

"TAKADA!" Raiden shouted so loud it caused birds to fly out of the nearby trees. "What the- but Zaria we're your team mates and of all people why Takada?" Raiden continued with is rant. Satoru covered Raiden's mouth to shut him up.

"Even though Raiden is annoying me right now. He has a point. Why won't you let us help you, but you have no problem with Takada helping you?" Satoru asked. He was a little annoyed to know that she was okay with Takada joining her and not him. Zaria shrugged her shoulders.

"Honestly I think he will be useful" Zaria responded. That really annoyed Satoru. Raiden shoved Satoru's hand away from his mouth.

"And we're not!? What is so great about Takada? He's just a show off!" Raiden shouted. He was still mad and it was mostly cause of Takada.

"Raiden for once shut up!" Satoru yelled at him. Raiden mumbled incoherent words under his breath and looked away.

"Look I know you guys are mad, but I have my reasons. You guys are still my team mates no matter what. Besides I have something bigger planned for us anyways" Zaria stated hoping her team mates would forgive her. Zaria moved closer to them and gave Satoru a side hug. "Group hug?" Zaria questioned thinking Raiden would come through.

"Hmph" Raiden grunted crossing his arms and faced away from the two.

"Come on Rai you know you want" Zaria taunted trying to get to Raiden's head. He didn't budge at all.

"If you come over here I'll punch Takada in the face for you" Zaria proposed. She knew Raiden would go for it. She was right, Raiden caved. He came over and joined the group hug.

"Don't get any ideas. This doesn't mean you're forgiven." Raiden stated still mad at her. Zaria giggled and Satoru smiled. They really were an unbreakable team.


	25. Chapter 25

The day had arrived for Zaria and Takada to execute their mission. Zaria sat at the kitchen table writing out a detailed plan on a map she made by memory. She waited on Takada to arrive so she could discuss her plan with him. Tosen walked in the kitchen ready to make breakfast.

"What are you doing?" Tosen asked seeing how focused Zaria was. She didn't answer and continued scribbling things on her paper. He knew that when she was focused like this that she ignored everyone in order to maintain her focus. He just shrugged his shoulders and reached into the fridge to grab some eggs for his breakfast. As he was about to turn the stove on there was a knock at the door. Usually no one comes over in the morning so Tosen was curious to see who it was. He walked into the mud room and opened the door.

"Takada? What are you doing her" Tosen asked. Takada has never been over the house before.

"Sorry to bother you so early Tosen, but I'm here to see Zaria" Takada responded. Tosen nodded and let him in. He guided Takada into the kitchen where Zaria was. Takada took a seat next to her.  
"Why am I not surprised that you're writing down a detailed plan. You know you're not even going to follow through with it" Takada commented. Zaria gritted her teeth but resisted the urge to slap him.

"If you knew the enemy we we're going to deal with you would be carefully planning you strategy too" Zaria responded. Takada looked confused now. What enemy was she talking about? He glanced over at her paper and saw the name Orochimaru. That put him in shock.

"O-Orchimaru?" Takada stuttered. Zaria nodded her head not even looking at him.

"Zaria are you insane? Is this why you asked me to come? Are you trying to get me killed?" Takada questioned in a panic. Zaria giggled in response. Even though Takada talks big he panics a lot.

"Relax, just trust me for once. As long as we stay hidden we won't have to worry about engaging in battle or dying" Zaria stated. "If we get caught just leave everything to me." She continued. "I've got a trump card" she said as she gave Takada a smirk. It wasn't that Takada didn't trust her. He trusted her completely with his life. It was the idea of infiltrated a hideout in the Sound Village that bothered him. Also the fact that Zaria wants to handle everything on her own if they get caught. He always knew she was insane. Takada knew he wasn't going to standby and watch Zaria take all the action. He was going to support her whether she liked it or not. They continued on discussing ways on how to enter the Sound Village without getting caught. The Sound and the Grass were considered enemies so they knew it wasn't going to be easy to sneak in.

"I've already managed to sneak into the Sound Village and find Orochimaru's hideout so that part is taken care of" Zaria stated. Takada was shocked and impressed at the same time. He knew what Zaria was capable of. However, he didn't know about how much stronger she has gotten since the chunin exams. She was the reason he made it out of the survival round. If Zaria and her team hadn't shown up when they did, he would have been dead. Takada listened to Zaria's plan carefully. If Zaria was able to get through the Sound Village with no harm and able to follow an elite ninja without being detected then maybe it was going to be easy after all. Zaria got up from the table.

"wait here for a second I'm going to get my mission gear" Zaria said as she went up to her room. She changed her clothes putting on her usually mission gear. She came back down and Takada got up. Zaria gestured to him that it was time to go. Takada nodded and followed Zaria out the door. They walked downtown in order to take shortcut to the village gate. There they ran into Zaria's team mates.

"Takada you jerk you better take really good care of Zaria! If she comes home with as little as a scratch on her I'll kill you!" Raiden shouted. Satoru sighed knowing Raiden was going to cause a scene. Takada looked at him annoyed.

"You really are an idiot aren't you Rai?" Takada questioned. That made Raiden more angry.

"WHAT DID YOU CALL ME!" Raiden shouted with anger.  
"Raiden will you shut up, you're causing a scene. Everyone is staring at us" Satoru voiced.

"I don't care! He's got some nerve taking Zaria away from us" Raiden continued to shout. Zaria wanted to say something, but knew it would be pointless.

"For your information, she asked me to come along." Takada stated annoyed with Raiden.

"So What she's not your team mate!" Raiden pestered.

"You're just jealous that Zaria wanted me to go on a mission with her and not you" Takada teased. Raiden growled at Takada. Zaria was getting annoyed now. She grabbed Takada by the back of his collar and dragged him away.

"You two can fight some other time. We have a mission to take care of" Zaria uttered to Takada. Both Raiden and Satoru looked at them confused. After they were gone Raiden crossed his arms and grumbled under his breath.

"It's not fair. What's so great about Takada?" Raiden mumbled. Satoru chuckled at Raiden. Satoru wasn't really a big fan of Takada either, but he wasn't the one that really voiced his opinion like Raiden did.

"Relax will you. It's just one mission. What harm can it do?" Satoru said trying to calm his team mate.

"Oh cut it Satoru. You and I both know that you hate Takada spending time alone with Zaria more than I do" Raiden countered. He was right, but like he said before it was just a mission.

"Yeah, but I'm not overreacting like you are" Satoru stated. "Like I said it's just a mission and plus Zaria doesn't even like Takada" He finished. Raiden gave a devious smirk that puzzled Satoru.

"Oh yeah then why did she willing pick him to go with her on a mission and not her own team mates? Don't you think it's a little weird how she told us not to get involved meanwhile she has absolutely no problem with Takada tagging along?" Raiden mentioned. Satoru knew he was right. It was a little weird that she did that. He even remembers her absolutely hating him when they were all in the academy together. She always called him a "show-off" or an "complete idiot". Now Satoru started to panic on the inside. What if there was something more going on? What if she actually like Takada over him? All these thoughts were racing through his mind. Raiden knew that he got to him. He chuckled as he watched Satoru go crazy in his thoughts.

"Calm down dude...like you said it's just a mission. What harm could it do?" Raiden said quoting Satoru from earlier. Satoru growled with a slight blush and smacked Raiden upside the head and walked away.

"Ouch...man Satoru you didn't need to hit me" Raiden said rubbing the back of his head. He eventually caught up to Satoru who didn't respond to him.

Zaria and Takada made there way to the gate. It was going to be at least two days before they arrived at the Sound Village. Once they arrived at the gate the went over the plan again just to be sure everything would work out perfectly and no small details were left out. When they were done with that , they made their way into the forest leaving the village. Zaria had never been on a mission with Takada before so she hoped that they would have at least somewhat decent teamwork. She knew of Takada's abilities which was why she chose him to come with her in the first place.

"That Raiden is a real piece of work. I don't know how you deal with him on a daily basis" Takada commented.

"With sheer will power not to slap him" Zaria replied. Takada chuckled in response. Despite her attitude towards Both Raiden and Takada, she actually liked having them around. Even though Raiden was the same age as her Zaria always thought of him as a younger brother. Takada she thought of as a close friend just like Satoru. It was a long journey ahead. Hopefully it would go by smoothly.


	26. Chapter 26

Zaria may be strong physically and emotionally, but when it came to her immune system she was weak. She got sick a lot when she was younger. On a recent B-ranked mission Zaria denied that she was sick but ended up fainting on the battlefield due to high fever. So now when there is a slight hint that she is sick, Zaria is not allowed to go on the assigned mission for safety reasons. Today all Team 13 had was a training session in the afternoon. Zaria woke up in the morning feeling a little weak but chose to ignore it. She got dressed and as she put on her shoes she got a little light headed. Zaria managed to regain her composer and continue down the stairs. She was able to make it down the stairs without tripping and entered the kitchen to eat her breakfast. Zaria sat at the table and stared at the plate of food in front of her. She stared at it for awhile until Tosen said something.

"Everything okay Zaria?" Tosen questioned. He noticed she hasn't touched her food at all. Zaria nodded as she continued to stare at her food. After awhile she decided that she wasn't hungry and pushed her plate away. "Are you sure you're okay?" Tosen continued to ask. There was concern clear in his voice. Zaria didn't say anything but nod her head. She got up from her seat and went to the mud room and put on her headband and leave the house. Zaria stumbled as she walked down the path that lea her to the training ground. Her head was pounding and her vision was blurry, but she continued to ignore it. When she got to the training grounds it was only Satoru waiting since Raiden and Daisuke like to show up late. Satoru noticed that Zaria looked different and not in a good way.

"Zaria are you okay? You don't look so good" Satoru questioned. Zaria gave Satoru a slight nod without saying anything. Just then Raiden showed up and saw how pale Zaria was.

"Wow Zaria you look terrible" Raiden commented earning a glare from Zaria.

"Zaria are you sure you're okay?" Satoru asked. Zaria kept quiet with her head nodding as responses. Satoru wasn't buying it and lifted his right hand to feel her forehead. It was really warm. Satoru gave her that "are you serious" look he always gives when Zaria lies to him.

"Seriously Zaria you're burning up!" Satoru exclaimed. Raiden gave Zaria the same look.

"Honestly Zar did you think you were going to get away with it? We know you too well. You need to go home and rest." Raiden stated.

"I usually don't say this but he's right" Satoru commented. Raiden glared at Satoru.

"Hey! What's that supposed to mean?" Raiden questioned annoyed.

"Guys please, you're giving me a headache" Zaria commented with a raspy voice. Satoru took Zaria by the hand.

"Come on you're going home. I'm surprised Tosen even let you out of the house like this" Satoru stated as he dragged Zaria back home. "Tell Daisuke-sensei I'll be right back!" Satoru voiced to Raiden. He nodded his head and gave Satoru a thumbs up. Zaria kept stumbling over her feet so Satoru decided to pick her up bridal style. Zaria blushed a little, but Satoru thought it was because of the fever she had.

"Come on Zar. I don't know why you have to be so stubborn. If you're sick just stay home and rest it's no big deal. Despite what you may think we can handle things on our own." Satoru commented. Zaria just frowned. He was right she is stubborn. "Even if we did let you train with us, your fever would spike and you'd pass out and I'd have to carry you home like this" Satoru continued.

"What makes you think I'll let you carry me home huh" Zaria teased. Satoru smirked as he tightened his grip on Zaria.

"What am I doing know then?" Satoru questioned taunting Zaria. She huffed and looked away with a soft blush. Satoru chuckled at Zaria's reaction. They made it back to Zaria's house. Satoru let Zaria down so he could open the door. Tosen was gone for the afternoon so they had the house to themselves.

"Do you need help up to your room?"Satoru asked. Zaria shook her head as she took one step on the stairs. By the time she got to the third stair she slipped but was caught by Satoru.

"I think you need a little help" Satoru commented as he ended up carrying her up to her room. He gently placed her down on her bed and tucked her in. "Do you need anything before I-" Satoru cut himself off when he saw Zaria had fallen asleep. "Why am I not surprised" Satoru stated as he chuckled. He walked out of the room and shut the door behind him. He left her house and went back to the training grounds where Raiden and Daisuke were waiting for him.

"How's Zaria doing?" Raiden asked as Satoru approached.

"She's fine the second I brought her to bed she passed out" Satoru replied. Raiden laughed in response.

"I don't know why she insists on training and going on missions while she's sick" Daisuke commented.

"Cause she's stubborn" Satoru commented.

"That's so true" Raiden chuckled. Daisuke smirked at the two. This was another rare occasion where the two of them got along.

"Well since Zaria is sick there's no point in training" Daisuke stated. "What I had planned I for you guys I needed all three of you here" Daisuke finished and disappeared. Satoru and Raiden looked at each other and shrugged their shoulders.

"Wanna go see how Zaria's doing?" Raiden suggested. Satoru thought about it for a second. He just came from her house and when he left she was asleep. He thought since she only just fell asleep she's probably still sleep.

"Nah let's leave her alone for now" Satoru replied. He started to walk away. Raiden followed behind.

"Well then wanna get something to eat?" Raiden then suggested. Satoru sighed with slight annoyance. Clearly Raiden wanted to hangout with Satoru. He gave in, Satoru really wanted to go home until he felt his stomach grumble.

"Alright fine lets go" Satoru replied. Raiden and Satoru ended up going to the noodle shop down the street in the center of the village square. They never go to the noodle shop since Zaria isn't much of a noodle person.

"It's a shame Zaria doesn't like this place. The noodles are awesome!" Raiden exclaimed as he slurped down his second bowl. Satoru just ate in silence. "Hey speaking of Zaria, how sick is she anyways?" he then asked. Satoru shrugged his shoulders.

"I don't know probably just a cold. You know how often she gets sick. It's probably nothing" Satoru replied taking a bite out of his rice.

"Yeah that's true. At least this time we weren't on a high ranked mission in the middle of a battle like last time" Raiden commented.

"Yeah that sucked getting her out of there" Satoru commented.

"What are you talking about?! I'm the one that carried her all the way home with needles sticking out of my back I didn't see you lifting a finger!" Raiden exclaimed.

"That's because you insisted on carrying her home idiot. I offered to help, but you said you got it" Satoru interjected.

"Whatever" Raiden said before starting his third bowl. Meanwhile Zaria woke up and started sneezing uncontrollably. She leaned over and grabbed a tissue off of her night stand.

"Man someone must be talking about me with all this sneezing I'm doing" Zaria said stuffy.

 _ **A/N:** It's not a Naruto fan fiction until you've added a random filler chapter that has nothing to do with the plot!_

 _Only about 4 more chapters left till the end!_


	27. Chapter 27

Zaria and Takada decided to take a break and set up camp for the night. Zaria gathered wood while Takada pitched up a tent. After a while Zaria came back with a bundle of sticks in each arm.

"Think this will last a whole night?" Zaria laughed. Takada chuckled and nodded his head.

"Yeah I think that will be plenty" Takada responded. Zaria put down the sticks and arranged a few in order to build a fire. "You didn't bring any matches did you?" he questioned. Zaria looked at him with an annoyed expression on her face. "What?" he questioned again. "You're looking at me like that's a stupid question" he commented.

"That's because it was a stupid question you idiot. I never bring matches I can light a fire without them" Zaria responded.

"How?" Takada asked. Zaria gave him that look again. Instead of answering him with words, she formed a hand sign. She lit the fire using a small version of the fireball jutsu. Now Takada understood.

"Oh that's how" Takada commented. Zaria gave him a small smile and nodded her head. They sat around the fire as the night went on. They took turns sleeping just in case enemy ninja tried to attack. It was Zaria's turn to keep watch. She sat by the fire while Takada slept in the tent. There was rustling in the bushes which startled her. Zaria took out a kunai from the pouch on her leg and threw it at the bush. She didn't hear any noise so she got up to see what that noise was. When she didn't see anything she ventured further into the forest to find the source. Zaria came across a familiar figure. It was yet again a reanimated Shisui.

"Yo Zar" Shisui greeted with a smirk. Zaria was confused. She thought Shisui had disappeared over three days ago yet here his is in front of her. Zaria rubbed both of her eyes. She thought she she was hallucinating. She looked again and he was still there. Shisui chuckled in response.

"I thought you were gone." Zaria stated in shock. Shisui shook his head. Zaria looked at him confused.

"There's something I have to tell you" Shisui said giving Zaria a serious look.

"Well what is it?" Zaria asked in response.

"You're after the wrong person. Orochimaru wasn't the person who reanimated me" Shisui stated. Zaria looked at him with shock. How did he know she was going after Orochimaru? "Do you know who the original leader of the Uchiha clan is?" Shisui questioned wanting to know how much Zaria knew about the history of the clan. Zaria nodded in response.

"Yeah Madara Uchiha right?" Zaria replied. Shisui nodded his head. "What does he have anything to do with anything?" Zaria questioned.

"He's the one that performed the reanimation jutsu" Shisui stated. Zaria was really shocked. She heard the legend of Madara Uchiha, but assumed he was dead.

"But how? I thought he was dead?" Zaria questioned.

"No he's still alive. Apparently he went into hiding so because of that we all thought he was dead" Shisui responded.

"But why would Madara need to revive members of the Uchiha clan? What's his motive?" Zaria questioned.

"Did Itachi tell you the real reason behind his murdering of our clan?" Shisui responded with a question. Zaria pondered for a minute. Then she remembered what Itachi told her that night.

"Yeah it was because the elders of the clan had planned a coup against the Leaf" Zaria mentioned. "If a civil war broke out then it would leave the Leaf's defenses weak and give opportunity for enemy nations to invade causing another great war" She continued. Shisui nodded. "But, I'm confused to why you were revived Shisui. Itachi told me that the two of you teamed up to stop the coup from within the clan" Zaria mentioned.

"We did, but I'm reanimated now so I have no free will. If Madara wants he can force me to attack the Leaf. So far I'm the only one that's been reanimated. If more members of the Uchiha clan become reanimated then we could be in serious trouble. I'm leaving it up to you and Itachi to stop the reanimation jutsu" Shisui stated.

"Me and Itachi? Does he know what's going on? Have you spoken to him? When I saw him last he had no idea you had been revived" Zaria stated.

"No I haven't seen him" Shisui said. He placed his right on Zaria's left shoulder. "I trust that you'll pass on the message for me. I don't know if I'll be able to reach him in time" Shisui continued. Zaria nodded her head.

"I promise I'll do what ever I can to stop Madara for you Shisui" Zaria commented. Shisui smiled and gave Zaria a hug.

"I knew I could count on you" Shisui commented. Zaria returned the hug.

"I know I never got the chance to say this when you were alive, but I love you Shisui. I miss you so much" Zaria voiced. This time she didn't shed a single tear. Shisui chuckled still hugging her.

"I love you too kiddo, remember that. I'm always watching over you, Even Obito and Izumi" Shisui stated. Izumi, even though Izumi was Itachi's age she was like a sister to Zaria. Even though they were in the same clan Izumi was in love with Itachi and Zaria was the only person who knew about it. She was happy that her family was watching over her.

"When you have to go back. Do me a favor and tell them I said hello and that I love them" Zaria stated.

"Anything for you Zar." Shisui replied. He broke away from Zaria. "I'm going to go now. Maybe I'll see you again one day" He said before he disappeared. Just then there was a noise coming from behind Zaria. She was on alert now.

"There you are Zaria!" Takada exclaimed appearing from a tree. Zaria sighed with relief that it was just him. "You disappeared when I woke up. I thought something happened to you. Are you okay?" Takada questioned as he came down to Zaria's level.

"Yeah everything's fine. You're in luck, we don't have to go to the Sound Village after all" Zaria stated.

"Why not?What happened?" Takada asked. He wasn't there for the conversation with Shisui so he was very confused.

"I'll explain later, but right now we have to go the the Leaf Village and relay a message" Zaria stated as she walked away.

"Right now?" Takada questioned following Zaria.

"Yes it's very important. The sooner we get there the sooner we can stop a minor issue before it becomes a real problem" Zaria replied. They passed through their camp sight and gathered their stuff. Takada put out the fire by throwing dirt on it and left. Now they set course for the Leaf Village.


	28. Chapter 28

With New information Zaria and Takada abandon their mission to the Sound Village and head straight to the Leaf Village. Now she was ready to get the Hokage involve. However, first she had to inform Kakashi. They were almost there. As they got closer the Leaf Village became more visible.

"Is that the Hidden Leaf?" Takada asked. Zaria nodded her head in response. Takada had never been to the Hidden Leaf Village before so he didn't know what to expect. She was just here a few days ago and now she's back again. The guards recognized her and let them through. Before Zaria and Takada could go to the Hokage she had to find Kakashi first. He stated that he wanted to be there when she spoke to Lady Hokage. Zaria and Takada ran around the village searching for Kakashi. After a few moments later she found him in the training grounds with his students.

"HEY ZAIRA'S BACK!" Naruto shouted. All of them turned and looked at Zaria and Takada. The two approached to the group.

"Hey guys sorry we'll save the small talk for later but right now I need to speak to Kakashi" Zaria said.

"What is it?" Kakashi asked. It must have been important if she came back so soon and with a partner.

"It's an emergency that I kinda need to speak to you alone about" Zaria stated. Kakashi understood when he saw the serious look on Zaria's face.

"Okay then" Kakashi responded. He turned back to his students. "You three wait right here for a while. I'll be right back" Kakashi said before he left with Zaria and Takada. School was out so Kakashi thought that would be the best place to get some privacy.

"Okay you were right. We need to get the Hokage involved." Zaria stated. Takada and Kakashi looked at her confused. Zaria had yet to explain the situation to Takada. He was completely in the dark about what was going on.

"Is this about Orochimaru?" Kakashi questioned. Zaria shook her head in response.

"No it's even worse than Orochimaru" Zaria replied. Kakashi looked at her confused again. Who could be worse than Orochimaru? "It's Madara Uchiha" Zaria finished. Kakashi looked at her a bit skeptical. Takada still looked confused.

"You do know Madara has been dead for a century now" Kakashi stated.

"I thought that too, but apparently he's not" Zaria responded. "Let me explain the whole situation so you'll understand better" Zaria continued.

"Go on" Kakashi responded.

"Well at first I had suspected Orochimaru for using the reanimation jutsu in order to bring back members of the Uchiha clan. However when me and Takada were making our way to the Sound Village to infiltrate his hideout and get more intel I was greeted by Shisui again" Zaria explained. Kakashi nodded his head and motioned for her to continue. "He told me that Orochimaru had nothing to do with the reanimation jutsu, but it was Madara Uchiha" Zaria continued. Even though Zaria was explaining everything Takada still seemed confused.

"Whose Madara Uchiha?" Takada asked.

"He was the leader of the Uchiha clan a very long time ago and the co-founder of the Hidden Leaf Village" Kakashi explained. Zaria nodded along.

"Anyways like we both stated earlier. We thought Madara was dead. However, according to Shisui he's been in hiding all this time using chakra support to keep himself alive" Zaria stated. Kakashi was in shock.

"Why is Madara bringing back members of the Uchiha clan?" Takada asked not really grasping the situation completely.

"This is the concerning part that the Hokage needs to know about" Zaria voiced. Kakashi cocked an eyebrow along with Takada. "Madara plans on destroying the Leaf Village" Zaria announced. Now they were in a state of emergency.

"We need to go see the Hokage right now!" Kakashi demanded. Zaria and Takada nodded and followed Kakashi to the Hokage's office. When they got there they were greeted by Shizune.

"Shizune is the Hokage busy right now?" Kakashi questioned. Shizune shook her head.

"No she's in the office filling out some paperwork, she doesn't really want to be bothered right now though." Shizune responded.

"We need to speak to her. It's an emergency!" Zaria exclaimed.

"She's right. The Village is in danger!" Takada added.

"What are you guys talking about? It looks so peaceful outside." Shizune responded as she looked out of the window to her right.

"Shizune, the peace won't last very long if we don't speak to Tsunade" Kakashi stated. Shizune gave out a heavy sigh.

"Okay fine." Shizune said defeated. She lead the group to the Hokage's office. Shizune knocked on the door before she entered.

"Lady Tsunade I have Kakashi and two grass ninja who want to speak to you" Shizune announced.

"Is it important?" Tsunade questioned. Shizune nodded in response. "Fine let them in" Tsunade said. Shizune stepped to the side as she let Kakashi, Zaria, and Takada through. Tsunade looked at Zaria with wide eyes.

"Zaria I didn't know you were still alive" Tsunade stated. Zaria gave her an annoyed look.

"We can talk about that later. We're kinda in a state of emergency." Takada stated.

"Who are you?" Tsunade asked.

"I'm Takada Sojen of the Hidden Grass , but who I am isn't important right now" Takada stated.

"What's going on?" Tsunade asked confused.

"Madara Uchiha is reviving members of the Uchiha clan and planning on destroying the Leaf Village" Zaria announced. "Before you ask I know what you're thinking and no he's not dead. He's been in hiding feeding off of chakra for life support" Zaria continued to explain. Tsunade was in complete shock.

"How do you know?" Tsunade questioned.

"Shisui so far is the only Uchiha I know of that's been reanimated so far and he told me himself" Zaria stated.

"Then we need to prepare for a possible war" Tsunade stated. All three of them nodded their head.

"I'll inform the chief back in the Hidden Grass and ask if he'll mobilize a troop to help" Zaria stated and Tsunade nodded.

"That would be appreciated thanks Zaria" Tsunade said and now Zaria nodded. "If that's all then you are dismissed. All three of them left the office. The three of them walked down the village square.

" So do you have a plan on how to stop Madara?" Kakashi asked. Zaria shook her head.

"No, Shisui never gave me any advice on how to fight Madara" Zaria said.

"Well for now we should go back to the Grass Village and tell the chief about what's going on" Takada suggested. Zaria nodded looking at Takada.  
"Yeah the sooner we get back to the Grass Village the sooner we can get together a group to help defend the Leaf" Zaria stated.

"Well let's go" Takada said and he made his way to the village gate.

" When we come back we should have plenty of ninja to support the Leaf" Zaria stated looking at Kakashi.

"I'm glad you were able to warn us before it was too late. At least we have time to prepare. I should probably get back to Naruto, Sasuke , and Sakura. I left them waiting at the training grounds for a long time now" Kakashi said.

"Well you go prepare them for a possible war. I'll see you when the time comes" Zaria said before she went to go catch up to Takada. Ended up going back to the training grounds where he kept his students waiting. Right now he was going to keep the situation on the down low for them. He didn't want them to worry about the future of the village just yet.


	29. Chapter 29

Zaria and I were on our way back to the Grass Village. Even though we didn't go to the Sound like we had originally planned, it was nice to know she trusted me enough to go on a mission with her. I remember being in the academy, she couldn't stand being around me. Her team mates absolutely hate me especially Raiden. The only reason he hates me is because all of the attention I get. Honestly I don't care for the attention. I only wanted the attention so Zaria would notice me. I'll admit I have a small crush on her. At the same time I'm also jealous of her. She is from the elite Uchiha clan. One of the most powerful clans. They rank higher than my clan, Sojen and the Masamora clan. She had everything going for her. She was strong and beautiful. I was severely injured in the survival round in the chunin exams. If it wasn't for her coming to my rescue, I wouldn't be here today.

"Takada, you okay?"Zaria questioned. I guess she noticed me spacing out. It would be embarrassing if I told her what I was thinking about. She'll probably never speak to me again.

"Uh yeah I'm fine" I responded. She seemed to brush it off and I was okay with that. I was actually hoping I wouldn't have to explain myself. The Grass Village was in sight now. Finally I could get away from this awkwardness. Don't get me wrong I enjoy being around Zaria. In fact she's one of the few people other than Mizune and Haru that I like. Her team mates on the other hand are different. Raiden always starts fights with me. Satoru I actually have no problem with. He just hates me because he knows about my crush on Zaria and he has a bigger crush on her than I do.

"Thanks for coming with me Takada" Zaria said interrupting my thoughts.

"Uh yeah...no problem" I replied. She looked at me weird. I could feel my face was getting warm. She knew something was up. Please don't let this get awkward than it already is.

"Are you sure you're okay Taka" Zaria questioned. "You can tell me if something's bothering you" she then stated. Did she just call me Taka? Damn why does she have to be so cute. She just made it more awkward. That's what I was afraid of. Should I just tell her? She'll probably think I'm an idiot like she already does. My mind was going crazy with different scenarios. It put me in a panic. What was I going to tell her? The fact that I have a crush on you? No, she would just laugh at me and call me stupid. I could lie to her and tell her everything's fine. Unfortunately she's too smart for that. That's one thing I admire about her. I guess I don't have much of choice now.

"Okay there's one thing that has been bothering me for awhile now" I stated. This sucks I was hoping I wouldn't have to tell her. I decided to only tell her half of the truth.

"Well what is it?" she questioned. I can't believe I'm doing this.

"Of all the people you could pick. Why choose me? Don't get me wrong I don't mind being here. It's just that I know you don't like me." I questioned. I finally opened up and now I can't even look at her. I fought it for a second but I glanced up at her. She looked confused, but then she giggled. That completely confused me.

"Really? That's what has been bothering you this whole time? It's silly don't you think?" Zaria stated. That was the response I was expecting. Zaria stopped for a minute. I stopped too wondering what she was thinking.

"I have a perfectly good reason for choosing you to come with me" She stated. Zaria looked at me with a smile on her face then turned around and continued walking. I couldn't help but blush. A perfectly good reason? What was it? I managed to catch up to her. "You managed to prove my theory without even knowing it" She continued. Now I was really confused. What is she talking about?

"What are you talking about Zaria?" I asked.

"Well my main reason was because I knew how well you can handle intel missions. Plus I wanted to see if you kept up the act when my team mates aren't around" Zaria said. So she already knew about that. I shouldn't be surprised. She is incredibly smart after all. The fact that she recognized my talents and was able to figure me out is amazing.

"So you already knew" I said to her. I didn't want to look at her.

"Well of course I did, but to be fair Mizune was the one who told me" She responded. I should have known. Mizune was Zaria's best friend in our class.

"I told her not to tell you. I figured you would think it's stupid" I confessed. I could hear her giggling. I blushed with embarrassment. Could this get any worse?

" I don't understand why me being a member of the Uchiha clan is such a big deal to you. Honestly it's not something I'm particularly proud of" she confessed. Why would she be proud to be an Uchiha? I would be proud to be in one of the most powerful ninja clans like the Uchiha. However being in the Uchiha clan wasn't really the main reason why I like her so much. I looked at her as we continued walking. She had a weird look on her face. The look of discomfort. I knew talking about this would make her feel uncomfortable. We finally approached the gates of the Grass Village.

"Well talk about it another time." I stated not wanting to make her more uncomfortable. I walked up ahead of her but stopped for a second. "By the way, it has nothing to do with you being in the Uchiha clan. I could care less about that. It's the fact that you are so much more skilled as a ninja and a lot smarter compared to me" I confessed before I continued walking. I didn't look at her as I spoke. So I had no idea what her reaction was. She kept quiet so I was a little worried. We entered the village. It was good to be back after two days. I felt a tap on my shoulder. I turned to see it was Zaria. She gave me a hug which surprised me.

"Stop comparing yourself to others, especially me. You're a great ninja just the way you are" Zaria whispered in my ear. I was definitely blushing. I wouldn't be surprised if my face was redder than a tomato. That was the nicest thing she has ever said to me. I was too shocked to hug her back. I peered off into the distance and there was her team mates, Raiden and Satoru. Both of them were glaring at me, especially Satoru. It almost looked like he was giving me the death stare. Like I said he had more of a crush on her than I did. Like he was in love with her. It was completely obvious. The only person who didn't know was probably Zaria herself. Although I would be surprised if she secretly knew already. Just then Zaria pulled away then place her right hand on my cheek and smiled at me. "Just remember that okay" She said looking at me with a sparkle in her eyes. I was in a loss for words so I just nodded. "Hopefully next time we can go on an actual mission together" She continued removing her hand from my face. I smirked in response. Maybe she does like me after all.

"Yeah that would be great" I said and Zaria giggled. She walked over to her team mates and waved goodbye. There was hope for me after all.


	30. Chapter 30

For the time being Zaria's mission was complete. Now she had to prepare for a war. When she walked through the gates of the village with Takada, she was greeted by her team mates. They didn't look to happy seeing her with Takada. Satoru had the worse reaction. He looked as if he wanted to kill him for even being near her. Satoru knew about Takada's crush on her. From there on they became rivals. Takada tried to make peace with Satoru, but none of his efforts have worked. She left Takada to meet up with her team mates.

"So Zaria did you punch Takada in the face like you promised" Raiden questioned. Zaria looked at him. She didn't punch him but that's not what she was going to tell him.

"Well of course I did. It was the first thing I did" Zaria lied in response. Satoru was suspicious. He knew something happened between Takada and her. He wasn't too fond of her hugging him. Even if it was just a simple hug it made Satoru jealous. Zaria and her team mates walked down the village square. They had plans on getting something to eat. Then Satoru realized something on behalf of Raiden.

"Hey Rai aren't you supposed to pick up your sister" Satoru questioned. Raiden's eyes went wide.

"Damn it I forgot! I'll see you guys later!" Raiden exclaimed as he ran down the street. Satoru and Zaria sighed in response.

"I don't understand how he manages to take care of her" Satoru stated.

"Yeah it's amazing" Zaria commented. The two of them continued walking through the village square. They remained quiet for awhile until Satoru broke it.

"So how was the mission with Takada?" Satoru asked. Zaria hesitated for a second before answering.

"It was alright. I didn't go as planned, but honestly I'm glad it didn't" Zaria answered. Satoru looked at her confused.

"What do you mean?" Satoru questioned. Zaria shook her head. She didn't want to get anyone else involved just yet.

"Oh it's nothing important" Zaria replied. Satoru was skeptical now. She was definitely hiding something. He wanted to know what was going on.

"Well will you at least tell me what happened between you and Takada? Just a few weeks ago you were calling him an annoying show off and today I see you hugging him" Satoru questioned pressing for an answer. Zaria looked at him. He stared right back at her. He has a look in his eyes that she's never seen before.

"Why does it matter?" Zaria asked in response. Satoru has never acted this way before.

"It just does so tell me!" Satoru exclaimed with annoyance. Zaria smirked in response. She knew what this was about. He's jealous of Takada. Zaria giggled with that thought. Satoru looked at her confused.

"Seriously are you really that bothered by me hugging Takada. It's just a simple hug Toru no need to make a bug deal over it" Zaria stated making Satoru blush. She liked calling him Toru when she teased him. The reaction she got out of it made her laugh.

"It's not the fact that you hugged someone it's the fact that you hugged Takada" Satoru stated. Things were getting serious now. Zaria was a little confused. What was so bad about giving Takada a hug? She knew it would bother Raiden a little. However Satoru seemed more bothered by it. Zaria thought about it for a second and giggled.

"Satoru Masamora, are you jealous of Takada?" Zaria teased. Satoru blushed in response. Zaria giggled again. She knew she was right. Satoru turned away. He didn't want Zaria to see his face all red. She hugged him from behind. Satoru was shocked. He turned his head to look at Zaria. She had a smile on her face. Satoru blushed again. He loved seeing her smile.

"Now you can't be jealous. You got a hug too" Zaria stated. Satoru chuckled and turned around releasing himself from her grip. It was now his turn to give her a hug. Now Zaria was shocked. She wasn't expecting him to do that. She hugged him back.

"I'm still jealous of Takada though" Satoru confessed. Zaria looked up at him. She had a confused look on her face. What else was he jealous about? Could it be that he's still bothered that she chose Takada to go on her mission after denying him and Raiden of their help. Zaria never depicted Satoru as the jealous type. She thought it was kinda funny. Satoru was always the serious one in the team. It was rare for him to show emotions like this. The only other emotions she's ever seen from his was annoyance towards Raiden and Takada and occasionally worry towards Zaria.

"What are you talking about?" Zaria questioned. She wanted to know what was on his mind. She let go of him. Satoru blushed and scratched the back of his head. She was curious to know and she wasn't going to let it go so easily like she did with Takada. "Well I'm waiting. Tell me!" Zaria demanded with a huff. Satoru hesitated for a moment. He looked at Zaria who looked at him with curiosity.

"Well...you see" Satoru started. Zaria looked at him with a cocked eyebrow. Satoru looked away still hesitated. It was getting harder for him to explain himself to her. Zaria guided his head to look at her. She kept to her hand on his cheek. She felt how warm his was.

"Are you okay? You feel really warm" Zaria stated. Satoru placed his hand over Zaria's. She blushed a little in response.

"Yeah I'm fine" Satoru responded as he removed Zaria's hand. He still held it in a loose grip.

"So are you going to tell me what's on your mind now?" Zaria asked. Satoru looked away again.

"Toru look at me and tell me!" Zaria exclaimed with annoyance. Satoru looked at her with shock.

"Tell me what's going on?" Zaria demanded.

"Fine I'll tell you!" Satoru exclaimed. He dragged Zaria to an alley way.

"Satoru what are you-" Zaria was cut off. Satoru abruptly kissed Zaria. She was completely shocked by his actions. Satoru pulled back with a blush on his face. Zaria looked at him with wide eyes.

"For the longest time, I have been in love with you Zaria" Satoru finally confessed. "The day we met in the academy. There was something about you that I found so fascinating. Then you told me the tragedy of your family and how you've been alone. I thought to myself that I finally found someone who understands my pain. When I got the fortune to get to know you better I was amazed by how beautiful and strong you are. The day we were put together in a squad was the same day I fell in love with you" Satoru explained. Zaria was in complete awe. She didn't know what to say. However she did know what to do. Zaria wrapped her arms around Satoru and kissed him. Today was the day that she realized that all this time in the back of her mind. She loved him too.


End file.
